UC-NRLF 


THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 


A   SYMBOL   CF   THE   FATE  OF   CONQUERORS 

AS    PROPHESIED     BY    ISAIAH,     EZEKIEL     AND     JOHN 
AND  FULFILLED  AT  NINEVEH,  BABYLON  AND  ROME 


A  STUDY  IN  THE  COMMERCE  OF  THE  BIBLE 


WILFRED   H.^CHOFF 

Seerttarv  of  the  Commercial  Mutfnm.  Philadelphia 


LONGMANS,     GREEN     AND     CO. 

FOURTH  AVENUE  &  30™  STREET,  NEW  YORK 
39   PATERNOSTER   ROW,   LONDON 

BOMBAY,    CALCUTTA,    AND    MADRAS 

1920 


GIFT  OF 


WilM 


THE  SHIP   "TYRE 


A  STUDY  IN  THE  COMMERCE  OF  THE  BIBLE 


THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 


A   SYMBOL   OF   THE   FATE  OF   CONQUERORS 

AS    PROPHESIED     BY    ISAIAH,     EZEKIEL     AND     JOHN 
AND  FULFILLED  AT  NINEVEH,   BABYLON  AND  ROME 


A  STUDY  IN  THE  COMMERCE  OF  THE  BIBLE 


BY 

WILFRED   H,   SCHOFF 

Secretary  of  the  Commercial  /!  .    ijkiiadelphia 


LONGMANS,     GREEN     AND      CO. 

FOURTH  AVENUE  &  30™  STREET,  NEW  YORK 
39   PATERNOSTER    ROW,   LONDON 

BOMBAY,    CALCUTTA,    AND    MADRAS 

1920 


"3.SYT 


COPYRIGHT  1920 

BY 

THE  COMMERCIAL  MUSEUM 
PHILADELPHIA 


The  design  on  the  title-page  is  from  the  relief  of  a  Phoenician 
ship  built  at  the  head  of  the  Persian  Gulf  for  the  campaign  of 
Sennacherib  against  Elam;  excavated  by  Layard  upon  the  site 
of  Nineveh. 


TABLE  OF  CONSENTS 


INTRODUCTION  .  .  .  .  .....  • 

THE  TABERNACLE   .......  ':v.;-'Y:fi"11  ^£.  ".'T^E 

DIVISION   OF   SPOIL    ........  9".J  1°  f1^*^     .      15 

<>d;    io  ^"£.0   ^fiT 
THE   TEMPLE   AND   PALACE        ........     ...      17 

te   r>fil*' 
OPHIR   VOYAGES      .........  ,    .......      21 


PROFANATION    AND    PILLAGE.     .     .     ^fltefouM  '  ,     9 
CAPTIVITY    ...........  no>;^fXj->-i    «£ 

THE  SHIP  "TYRE"  .......  iy  y  .  'w/I  '.to.  s 

THE  PRINCE  OF  TYRE   .....  ^{dltn.  ^<jl  p«tf' 


THE    KING   OF   TYRE       ..........  '"I1  r'1^  /-368 


fq  »i5fw  .^iq^^-i  ?i     o! 
NOTES   TO   THE    ALLEGORY  .........  ^     ..      /I 

THE    SECOND   TEMPLE    ......  '4  9^*/°ll  ^VQ   *.      94 

THE   GREAT    CITY    "BABYLON"    .     .'lf!J  !°  .bl'.d  ,&  l°l     .      96 
THE   HOLY   CITY      ........   d:  .J>^^l^13]f;i  4UfiTlO4 

THE    POMP   AND   THE   TRAPPINGS     .'  S11.^?'  /J^'t.'JQ!  .    HO 
PRECIOUS   STONES       .......  '  ."'.     ......   I!  I 


3<   .1013;. 
THE   SPECIFICATIONS   COMPARED     .........    131 

•         TO  '' 


DATE   OF  THE   TRADITION     ............   135 

APPENDIX    ...........    '.Bri.  "?"!  V-:Ifi.U.".   I46 


ABBREVIATIONS  USED  ..............   148 

INDEX       ............   '{^H^T^'v     .     .   149 

•    }o  iUiia 
oh  on  .;>£/// 


456648 


FOREWORD 

The  dooms  of  the  ship  "Tyre"  and  of  the  "king  of 
Tyre"  are  pronounced  in  the  twenty-seventh  and  twenty- 
eighth  chapters  of  the  book  of  the  prophet  Ezekiel. 

The  cargo  of  the  ship  consists  of  the  materials  of  the 
temple  and  palace  at  Jerusalem,  carried  to  Babylon,  with 
a  people  captive  and  their  ruler  blinded,  by  the  soldiers  of 
king  Nebuchadrezzar;  the  ship  herself  is  a  symbol  of 
Babylon,  as  repository  of  the  ravished  treasure;  and  the 
*  *  king  of  Tyre ' '  is  given  boundaries  that  mark  him  as  none 
other  than  the  ruthless  ruler  of  Babylon. 

By  such  devices  did  the  prophet  of  the  captivity  give  heart 
to  his  people,  where  plain  speech  must  have  been  disastrous : 

'  *  Curse  not  the  king,  no,  not  in  thy  thought,  .   .  . 
For  a  bird  of  the  air  shall  carry  the  voice. ' ' 

Thus  interpreted,  these  chapters  become  a  political  docu- 
ment intensely  real  in  its  assertion  of  civil  right  against  the 
oppressor,  and  in  its  promise  of  the  fate  that  awaits  the 
conqueror,  be  he  Sennacherib  or  Nebuchadrezzar,  Antiochus 
or  Titus,  Attila  or  Hohenzollern. 

"  If  any  man  have  an  ear,  let  him  hear: 
He  that  leadeth  into  captivity  shall  go  into  captivity. ' ' 

It  is  a  document  to  which  almost  every  passage  in  the  Bible, 
wherein  materials  of  commerce  are  mentioned,  is  directly 
related.  It  was,  no  doubt,  this  device  of  expressing  defiance 
of  unrighteous  political  power  by  a  Code  of  Substituted  Names 
which  led  also  to  the  elaborate  numerical  code  that  is  apparent 


in  the  later  Jewish  and  early  Christian  writings;  whereof  a 
typical  instance  is  the  '  *  number  of  the  beast ' '  which  signifies 
the  Emperor  Nero  in  the  Apocalypse. 

Ship  and  cargo,  king  and  boundaries  were  discussed  by  me 
before  the  American  Oriental  Society  at  its  meeting  of  1919, 
and  are  set  forth,  with  some  amplification  and  the  necessary 
evidence,  in  the  present  volume. 

My  gratitude  for  helpful  suggestions  is  expressed  to 
Dr.  James  Alan  Montgomery,  Professor  in  the  University  of 
Pennsylvania,  and  to  Dr.  George  William  Gilmore,  Editor 
of  the  Homiletic  Review,  New  York. 


WILFRED  H.  SCHOFF. 


The  Commercial  Museum 

Philadelphia 
January  1,  1920 


Quinquireme  of  Nineveh  from  distant  Ophir, 

Rowing  home  to  haven  in  sunny  Palestine, 

With  a  cargo  of  ivory, 

And  apes  and  peacocks, 

Sandalwood,  cedarwood,  and  sweet  white  wine. 


(From  Cargoes;  Collected  Poems  by  John  Masefield 
The  Macmillan  Co.,  publishers) 


THE   SHIP  "TYRE" 

The  position  of  Palestine  at  the  meeting- 
point  of  two  ancient  trade-routes,  that  between 
the  Nile  and  the  Euphrates,  and  that  between 
the  Red  Sea  and  the  Mediterranean  coasts, 
enabled  its  inhabitants  always  to  be  familiar 
with  the  facts  of  international  trade,  and  under 
favorable  conditions  to  share  in  its  benefits. 
But  as  the  cities  of  Palestine  were  located  inland 
and  its  rulers  never,  except  for  brief  periods, 
dominated  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean  or  of 
the  Red  Sea,  it  was  only  through  commercial 
alliances  with  neighboring  peoples  that  their 
commercial  strength  could  be  developed.  Broken 
alliances  or  internal  division  meant  cessation  of 
trade  and  aggression  from  more  powerful  neigh- 
bors. In  the  records  of  Palestine  we  do  not 
find,  therefore,  any  consecutive  series  of  com- 
mercial documents,  such  as  those  of  Egypt  and 
Babylonia,  but  only  an  occasional  picture. 
It  is  evident  also  that  some  of  the  most 
detailed  of  these  records  that  appear  in  the 
Old  Testament  and  are  summarized  in  the  New, 
are  strictly  speaking,  not  records  of  trade  at  all, 
but  symbolic  geographical  pictures  of  tabernacle, 
temple,  and  palace,  of  the  institutions  of  priest- 
hood and  princedom;  the  symbolism  being  due 
in  part  to  the  avoidance  of  direct  mention  of 
sacred  things,  and  in  part  to  the  danger  of  pre- 
dicting harm  that  is  to  befall  a  triumphant  and 
vindictive  enemy.  These  passages  form  a  tradi- 
tion. They  must  be  considered,  not  separately, 
but  together. 


10  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 


I 

The  basis  of  the  tradition  is  found  in  the 
specifications  for  the  tabernacle,  "written  by 
Moses  as  the  words  of  the  Lord",1  according 
to  which  Moses  took  of  the  children  of  Israel 
as  an  offering  to  the  Lord  the  following  items  :2 

Gold,  silver  and  brass 

Blue,  purple  and  scarlet,  and  fine  linen 

Goats'  hair,  rams'  skins  dyed  red,  and  sealskins 

Acacia-wood 

Oil  for  the  light 

Spices  for  the  anointing  oil,  and  for  the  sweet 
incense 

Shoham  stones,  and  stones  to  be  set,  for  the 
ephod  and  for  the  breastplate. 

Of  these  substances  the  tabernacle  and  its 
equipment  were  made;  and  as  the  specifica- 
tions were  written  in  the  Law,  and  were  gen- 
erally familiar,  it  may  be  assumed  that  mention 
of  them  implied  a  suggestion  of  the  tabernacle 
itself,  and  of  all  that  it  represented. 

The  ark  was  made  of  acacia-wood  and  gold,3 
with  ark-cover  and  two  cherubim  of  gold. 

The  table,  of  acacia-wood  and  gold.  Its 
dishes,  pans,  jars  and  bowls  were  of  gold.  On 
the  table,  the  showbread,  twelve  loaves.4 


1  Ex.  XXIV,  4  3  Ex.  XXV,  10-16 

2  Ex.  XXV,  3-7  *  Ex.  XXV,  23-30 


THE   TABERNACLE  11 

The  candlestick,  the  seven  lamps,  their  tongs 
and  snuffdishes,  were  of  gold.5 

The  curtains  of  the  tabernacle  were  of  fine 
twined  linen,  blue,  purple  and  scarlet,  and  their 
clasps  of  gold.6 

The  tent  over  the  tabernacle  was  of  goats' 
hair,  with  clasps  of  brass.7 

The  covering  for  the  tent  was  of  rams'  skins 
dyed  red,  with  an  outer  covering  of  sealskins.8 

The  boards  for  the  tabernacle  were  of  acacia- 
wood.  They  were  overlaid  with  gold,  and  they 
had  sockets  of  silver.9 

The  veil  was  of  blue,  purple  and  scarlet,  and 
fine  twined  linen.  It  was  hung  on  pillars  of 
acacia,  with  hooks  of  gold,  and  sockets  of  silver.10 

The  screen  for  the  door  was  of  blue,  purple  and 
scarlet,  and  fine  twined  linen.  It  was  hung  on 
pillars  of  acacia,  with  hooks  of  gold,  and  sockets 
of  brass.11 

The  altar  was  of  acacia,  overlaid  with  brass. 
Its  pots,  shovels,  basins,  flesh-hooks  and  fire- 
pans, its  grating  with  rings,  were  of  brass.12 

6  Ex.  XXV,  31-40         «  Ex.  XXVI,  1-6  7  Ex.  XXVI,  7-11  :  — 

Rabbinical  interpretation,  "badger  skins",  as  to  which  the 
Talmud  gives  the  following  rather  unconvincing  explanation: 
The  badger,  as  it  existed  in  the  days  of  Moses,  was  an  animal  of 
unique  type,  and  the  learned  are  not  agreed  whether  it  was  a  wild 
one  or  a  domestic.  It  had  only  one  horn  on  its  forehead;  and  was 
assigned  for  the  time  to  Moses,  who  made  a  covering  of  its  skin  for 
the  tabernacle;  after  which  it  became  extinct,  having  served  the 
purpose  of  its  existence.  Rabbi  Yehudah  says,  The  ox,  also,  which 
the  first  man,  Adam,  sacrificed  had  but  one  horn  on  its  forehead. 
(Shabbath,  28,  2) 

8  Ex.  XXVI,  H  10Ex.  XXVI,  31-33        12Ex.  XXVII,  1-8  ; 

9  Ex.  XXVI,  15-30        "Ex.  XXVI,  36-37  anachronistic? 


12  THE    SHIP   "TYRE" 

The  hangings  for  the  court  of  the  tabernacle 
were  of  fine  twined  linen;  they  were  hung  on 
pillars  of  acacia,  with  hooks  of  silver,  and  sockets 
of  brass.13 

The  screen  for  the  gate  of  the  court  was  of 
blue,  purple  and  scarlet,  and  fine  twined  linen, 
hung  on  pillars  of  acacia,  with  hooks  of  silver, 
and  sockets  of  brass.14 

A  lamp  was  to  burn  continually  in  the  tent  of 
meeting,  for  which  was  to  be  brought  "pure 
olive  oil  beaten  for  the  light."15 

The  garments  for  the  priest  were  breastplate, 
ephod,  robe,  tunic,  mitre  and  girdle.16 

The  ephod  was  of  gold,  of  blue,  purple  and 
scarlet,  and  fine  twined  linen.  It  was  fastened  by 
shoulder-pieces  in  which  were  set  two  shoham 
stones,  engraved  with  the  names  of  the  twelve 
tribes  of  Israel,  six  on  each  stone. 17 

The  breastplate  was  of  gold,  of  blue,  purple 
and  scarlet,  and  fine  twined  linen.  It  was  set 
with  four  rows  of  stones,  three  stones  in  each 
row,  each  stone  being  engraved  with  the  name  of 
one  of  the  tribes  of  Israel.  Behind18  the  breast- 
plate were  put  the  Urim  and  Thummim.19 

The  robe  of  the  ephod  was  all  of  blue.  On 
the  skirts  were  pomegranates  of  blue,  purple  and 
scarlet,  and  bells  of  gold.20 

The  tunic  was  woven  of  fine  linen,  in  chequer 
work.21 

13Ex.  XXVII,  9-10  "Rather    than  "with-    2°Ex.  XXVIII,  31-35 
"Ex.  XXVII,  16-17         in,"    as    AV,    etc.      »Ex.  XXVIII,  39 
«Ex.  XXVII,  20-21          Cf.  Cams,  The  Oracle 
"Ex.  XXVIII,  4-5  of  Yahveh,  p.  20.) 

"Ex.  XXVIII,  6-12  "Ex.  XXVIII,  15-30 


THE  TABERNACLE 75 

The  mitre  was  of  fine  linen,  and  upon  it,  on  a 
lacing  of  blue,  was  a  plate  of  gold,  on  which  was 
engraved:  "Holy  to  the  Lord."22 

The  girdle  was  woven  in  colors.23 

At  the  consecration  of  the  priests  there  were 
offerings  of  bullock  and  rams,  with  unleavened 
bread,  cakes  unleavened  mingled  with  oil,  and 
wafers  unleavened  spread  with  oil.  These  were 
made  of  fine  wheaten  flour.24 

Upon  the  altar  were  offered  two  lambs  day  by 
day,  for  a  burnt-offering.  With  them  were  fine 
flour  mingled  with  oil  for  a  meal-offering,  and 
wine  for  a  drink-offering.25 

There  was  an  altar  to  burn  incense  upon,  of 
acacia-wood  and  gold.26 

Between  the  tent  of  meeting  and  the  altar 
was  a  laver  of  brass.27 

The  holy  anointing  oil  was  compounded  of 
"the  chief  spices",  flowing  myrrh,  sweet  cinna- 
mon, sweet  calamus,  cassia;  and  olive  oil.28 

The  incense  was  compounded  of  spices — storax, 
onycha,  galbanum;  with  pure  frankincense.29 

Such  were  the  materials  used  for  the  con- 
struction of  the  tabernacle,  and  for  its  adorn- 
ment, service,  and  ritual.30  While  they  entered 
into  the  commerce  of  the  period  many  other 
things  entered  also  into  that  commerce;  and  a 
list  of  these  materials  suggests,  not  commerce  in 
itself,  but  the  tabernacle  and  the  institution  of 
priesthood. 

»Ex.  XXVIII,  36-39  MEx.  XXX,  1-3        »Ex.    XXX,  34-35  :— 

«Ex.  XXVIII,  39  CTEx.  XXX,  17-21          Magil's  text 
"Ex.XXIX,  1-2, 10-27  anachronistic?  »Ex.XXXV-XXXVIII, 

26Ex.  XXIX,  38-42  »Ex.  XXX,  23-25      also  Num.  II,  IV. 


14  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 


II 


While  the  tribes  of  Israel  were  wandering  in 
the  wilderness,  they  gained  a  victory  over  the 
Midianites,  and  the  command  was  laid  upon 
Moses  that  the  spoil  might  be  retained  if  puri- 
fied. This  was  done  by  passing  through  the 
fire,  and  then  sprinkling  with  water,  the  gold, 
silver,  brass,  iron,  tin,  and  lead.  Whatever 
could  not  endure  the  fire  was  passed  through 
water:  garments,  and  things  of  skin,  goats' 
hair,  and  wood.  A  definite  proportion  was  then 
fixed,  of  the  shares  of  the  spoil  to  be  set  aside,  to 
the  warriors;  to  the  rest  of  the  people;  as  the 
Lord's  tribute;  and  for  the  Levites.1 

The  spoil  included  persons  (young  maidens 
only),  beeves,  asses,  and  sheep.2 

The  officers  who  had  taken  booty  brought,  as 
an  offering  to  make  atonement,  jewels  of  gold, 
armlets,  bracelets,  signet-rings,  ear-rings,  and 
girdles.3 

To  the  priests  and  the  Levites  were  reserved 
tithes  of  the  oil,  and  the  wine,  and  the  wheat, 
and  the  firstfruits  of  cow,  sheep,  and  goat,  "and 
of  whatsoever  is  first  ripe."  This  was  their 
reward  for  service  in  the  tabernacle.4 


iNum.  XXXI,  21-24  4  Num.  XVIII,   11-13, 

2  Num.  XXXI,  28-47  31;     Deut.    XIV, 

a  Num.  XXXI,  > 


DIVISION  OF  SPOIL /5 

Failure  to  yield  up  spoil  or  tithe  due  to  the 
priesthood  was  a  sin  against  the  Lord.5  Among 
the  spoil  of  another  battle  was  a  "goodly  Shinar 
mantle",  which  one  Achan  coveted,  and  hid  in 
the  earth  under  his  tent,  together  with  one 
hundred  shekels  of  silver,  and  a  wedge  of  gold  of 
fifty  shekels  weight.  The  anger  of  the  Lord 
being  kindled,  Joshua  succeeded  in  obtaining  a 
confession,  and  recovered  the  spoil.  Thereupon 
the  guilty  man,  his  sons  and  daughters,  oxen 
and  asses,  sheep,  tent  and  all  that  he  had,  were 
stoned  and  burned,  and  the  Lord  thereby  turned 
from  the  fierceness  of  his  anger.6 

This  tribal  division  was  not  observed  by  the 
Israelites  only.  In  the  Song  of  Deborah  we 
are  told  how  an  enemy  had  expected  to  deal  with 
them: 

'Are  they  not  finding,  are  they  not  dividing  the  spoil? 

A  damsel,  two  damsels  to  every  man; 

To  Sisera  a  spoil  of  dyed  garments, 

A  spoil  of  dyed  garments  of  embroidery, 

Two  dyed  garments  of  broidery  for  the  neck  of  every  spoiler.'7 

Use  of  the  spoil  in  irregular  ceremonial 
was  held  a  sin.  Gideon,  after  his  victory  over 
the  Midianite  kings,  Zebah  and  Zalmunna, 
refused  to  rule  over  Israel — "the  Lord  shall  rule 

5Cf.  the  tribute  of   Ramses  III   to   Amon-Re,    (Breasted,    Ancient 
Records,  IV,  126): 

"The  king  himself,  presenting  the  tribute  to  Amon  from  the 
great  chiefs  of  every  country,  being:  silver,  gold,  lapis  lazuli,  mala- 
chite, all  (kinds  of)  costly  stones  without  limit,  from  the  booty  which 
his  majesty  carried  off,  from  that  which  his  valiant  sword  captured; 
placed  before  (his)  august  father,  Amon-Re,  lord  of  Thebes,  accord- 
ing as  he  gave  to  (him)  all  valor." 
e  Josh.  VII,  10-26  7  Judg.  V,  28-30 


16  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

over  you" — but  requested  as  spoil  the  ear-rings 
taken.  He  received  in  golden  ear-rings  seven- 
teen hundred  shekels,  "beside  the  crescents, 
pendants  and  purple  raiment,  and  the  chains 
about  the  camels'  necks."  But  he  made  an 
ephod  thereof,  and  put  it  in  his  city,  "which 
thing  became  a  snare  unto  Gideon,  and  to  his 
house."8 

Through  this  division  of  the  spoil  all  Israel 
profited  by  a  victory: 

Ye  daughters  of  Israel,  weep  over  Saul, 
Who  clothed  you  in  scarlet,  with  other  delights, 
Who  put  ornaments  of  gold  upon  your  apparel. 
How  are  the  mighty  fallen  in  the  midst  of  the  battle!9 

And  the  list  of  the  things  to  be  purified  and 
divided  became  traditional:  "as  they  gather 
silver  and  brass  and  iron  and  lead  and  tin  into 
the  midst  of  the  furnace,  to  blow  the  fire  upon 
it,  to  melt  it;  so  will  I  gather  you  in  Mine  anger 
and  in  My  fury,  and  I  will  cast  you  in,  and  melt 
you."/0 

A  list  of  these  materials  suggests,  not  spoil  in 
itself,  but  the  relation  of  the  people  to  the  priest- 
hood, and  the  favor  of  the  Lord  thereby  promised 
them. 


•  Judg.  VIII,  22-27       »  2  Sam.  I,  24  10Ezek.  XXII,  20 


THE  TEMPLE  AND  PALACE  17 


III 

When  the  Israelites  had  established  a  united 
kingdom,  thus  entering  into  political  and  com- 
mercial relations  with  their  larger  and  wealthier 
neighbors,  they  found  their  tabernacle  unsuited 
to  the  new  prosperity.  David  assembled  the 
princes  and  the  captains,  the  rulers  and  the 
mighty  men,  and  said  to  them  that  it  had  been 
in  his  heart  to  build  a  house  of  rest  for  the  ark 
of  the  covenant,  but  that  as  a  man  of  war  who 
had  shed  blood,  C?od  had  forbidden  him  to  do  so, 
and  had  chosen  Solomon  his  son  "to  sit  upon  the 
throne  of  the  kingdom  of  the  Lord  over  Israel." 
Then  David  gave  to  Solomon  ("in  writing,  as 
the  Lord  hath  made  me  wise  by  His  hand  upon 
me")  the  patterns  of  everything  for  the  temple; 
vessels  of  gold,  vessels  of  silver,  candlesticks  and 
lamps  of  gold  and  silver,  golden  tables  of  show- 
bread,  tables  of  silver;  flesh-hooks,  basins,  jars, 
and  bowls  of  gold;  bowls  of  silver;  golden  altar 
of  incense;  golden  chariot,  the  cherubim  that 
spread  out  their  wings  and  covered  the  ark. 
David  called  upon  the  people  willingly  to  con- 
secrate themselves  to  the  work,  and  himself  gave 
the  things  which  he  had  prepared.1 

David's  gifts  included' gold,  silver,  brass,  iron 
and  wood;  shoham  stones ;  stones  to  be  set,  glister- 
ing and  of  divers  colors;  all  manner  of  precious 
stones;  marble  stones  in  abundance.  He  gave 
also  his  personal  treasure;  gold  of  Ophir  three 

1  1  Chron.  XXVIII,  1-3,  9-19:  XXIX,  1-2 


18  THE   SHIP   "TYRE" 

thousand  talents,  and  refined  silver  seven  thou- 
sand talents.2 

Solomon,  after  he  had  succeeded  to  the  throne, 
sent  to  Hiram  king  of  Tyre,  who  was  "ever  a 
lover  of  David",  saying  that  David  could  not 
build  the  house  "for  the  wars  which  were  about 
him  on  every  side",  but  that  the  Lord  had  now 
given  him  rest  on  every  side,  and  he  purposed  to 
build  the  house.3 

The  resources  of  Israel  being  inadequate  to 
the  plan  of  the  building,  Solomon  .arranged  for 
the  supply  of  labor  and  materials  from  Phoenicia. 
For  the  workmen  he  gave  large  allowances  of 
wheat  and  barley,  wine  and  oil.  From  Hiram 
he  received  cedar  and  cypress  from  Lebanon, 
rafted  down  by  sea;  and  "great  stones,  costly 
stones,  to  lay  the  foundation  of  the  house  with 
hewn  stone."4 

The  floors  were  of  cypress.  The  walls  were  of 
cedar,  richly  carved.  The  altar  was  of  cedar, 
overlaid  with  gold.  The  cherubim  were  of 
olive-wood,  overlaid  with  gold.  The  wall-carv- 
ings were  of  cherubim,  palm-trees  and  flowers. 
The  doors  of  the  sanctuary  were  of  olive-wood, 
overlaid  with  gold.  At  the  entrance  of  the 
temple  were  door-posts  and  frame  of  olive-wood, 
with  folding  doors  of  cypress.  The  inner  court 
was  built  with  hewn  stone  and  cedar  beams. 
All  the  foundations  were  of  costly  stones,  "even 
great  stones,  stones  of  ten  cubits."  Above  were 
costly  stones,  "after  the  measure  of  hewn 

2  1  Chron.  XXIX,  3-4         3  1  Kings  V,  16-19 

4  1  Kings  V,  21-31;  2  Chron.  II,  2-15:  the  chronicler  has   evidently 
exaggerated  the  gold. 


THE  TEMPLE  AND  PALACE  19 

stones,"  and  cedar-wood.  The  veil  was  of  blue, 
purple  and  crimson,  and  fine  linen.  Before  the 
entrance  were  two  great  brazen  pillars.  The 
altar  was  of  brass,  also  the  molten  sea,  standing 
upon  twelve  figures  of  oxen;  and  the  smaller 
lavers.  The  pots,  shovels,  basins  and  bowls 
were  of  bright  brass,  cast  in  Jordan  clay.  Candle- 
sticks and  lamps,  altar  of  incense,  tables  for 
showbread,  tongs,  snuffers  and  pans,  were  of 
gold.  The  whole  house  was  overlaid  with  gold, 
and  "garnished  with  precious  stones  for  beauty."6 

For  the  service  and  ritual  of  the  temple,  no 
less  than  its  adornment,  there  were  required  on 
an  unprecedented  scale  materials  not  produced 
in  Palestine  or  Syria;  gold,  incense,  spices  and 
precious  stones,  and  fine  fabrics.6 

The  royal  palace  was  built  magnificently,  like 
the  temple.  There  was  a  great  throne  of  ivory, 
overlaid  with  gold.  Two  lions  stood  beside  the 
arms.  It  had  six  steps,  with  twelve  lions,  six  on 
either  side.  The  drinking-vessels,  and  all  the 
other  vessels,  were  of  gold;  nothing  was  of  silver, 
"it  was  nothing  accounted  of."  All  the  other 
kings  came  bearing  gifts,  vessels  of  silver  and  of 
gold,  raiment,  armor,  spices,  horses  and  mules, 
a  rate  year  by  year.7 

6  1  Kings  VI,  14-36;  2  Chron.  Ill,  3-16,  IV,  1-22 

8 1  Kings  X,  18-20,  23-25;  2  Chron.  IX,  17-20,  23-24 

7  Cf.   Inscription   of     Ramses   III   in   the    Medinet   Habu    temple, 

(Breasted,  Ancient  Records,  IV,  190) 

"I  filled  its  treasury  with  the  products  of  the  lands  of  Egypt: 
gold,  silver,  every  costly  stone  by  the  hundred-thousand.  Its 
granary  was  overflowing  with  barley  and  wheat;  (its)  lands,  its  herds, 
their  multitudes  were  like  the  sand  of  the  shore.  I  taxed  for  it  the 
Southland  as  well  as  the  Northland.  Nubia  and  Zahi  (came)  to  it, 


20  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

The  royal  army  was  enlarged  by  the  addition 
of  chariots  and  cavalry.  Solomon  had  one 
thousand  four  hundred  chariots,  and  twelve 
thousand  horsemen,  bestowed  in  the  chariot 
cities  and  in  Jerusalem.  Horses  were  bought  in 
Egypt  and  of  the  men  of  Keveh,  at  one  hundred 
and  fifty  shekels  of  silver  each.  Chariots  were 
bought  in  Egypt  at  six  hundred  shekels  of  silver 
each.  They  were  received  also  as  gifts  from 
neighboring  kings.8 

These  lists  of  the  royal  equipment  became 
traditional,  and  mention  of  their  principal 
items  suggests,  not  palace  or  army  in  themselves, 
but  the  institution  of  royalty,  the  "throne  of  the 
kingdom  of  the  Lord  over  Israel." 


bearing  their  impost.  It  was  filled  with  captives,  which  thou  gavest 
to  me  among  the  Nine  Bows,  (and  with)  classes  which  I  trained  by 
the  ten-thousand.  I  fashioned  thy  great  statue  resting  in  its  midst; 
"Amon-Endowed-with-Eternity"  was  its  august  name;  it  was 
adorned  with  real  costly  stone  like  the  horizon.  When  it  appeared, 
there  was  rejoicing  to  see  it.  I  made  for  it  table-vessels,  of  fine  gold; 
others  of  silver  and  copper,  without  number.  I  multiplied  the 
divine  offerings  presented  before  thee,  of  bread,  wine,  beer,  and  fat 
geese;  numerous  oxen,  bullocks,  calves,  cows,  white  oryxes,  and 
gazelles  offered  in  his  slaughter  yard." 
•  1  Kings  X,  26-29;  2  Chron.  IX,  25-23 


OPHIR  VOYAGES  21 


IV 

To  the  maintenance  of  the  temple  and  its 
services,  of  the  palace  and  the  army,  foreign 
trade  was  essential.  The  things  needed  were 
bought  by  the  king's  merchants  at  a  price;  they 
came  as  gifts  or  tribute  from  other  kings;  in 
larger  measure  they  were  brought  by  the  queen 
of  Sheba;  but  for  an  assured  supply  an  organized 
traffic  was  necessary.  The  problem  was  solved 
by  the  Ophir  voyages.  In  their  day  these 
voyages  played  a  part  similar  to  that  of  the 
Portuguese  voyages  to  India;  but  it  is  unlikely 
that  their  destination  lay  outside  Arabia  or  the 
Horn  of  Africa,  notwithstanding  some  of  the 
cargo  may  have  come  from  more  distant  lands. 
The  economic  conditions  that  led  to  this  enter- 
prise may  be  sought  in  Arabia  itself. 

Gold,  spices,  incense  and  precious  stones  were 
chiefly  in  demand.  Gold  was  produced  in 
abundance  in  the  mountains  and  valleys  of 
central  Arabia.  Gems  came  from  the  same 
mountains,  and  from  far-away  Media,  Badak- 
shan,  Malabar  and  Ceylon.  Spices  were  pro- 
duced on  the  slopes  of  the  mountains  of  south- 
ern Arabia,  in  Somaliland  and  Socotra,  Malabar 
and  Ceylon.  It  is  unnecessary  here  to  deter- 
mine whether  Solomon's  kingdom  drew  upon 
lands  beyond  Arabia  for  its  supplies.  Whatever 
their  sources,  they  were  transported  over  the 
Arabian  caravan-routes,  and  monopolistic  prac- 
tice by  the  tribes  of  Arabia  was  the  cause  of  con- 


22  THE    SHIP   "TYRE" 

stant  friction  and  of  frequent  warfare,  wherein 
Egypt,  Palestine,  Syria,  Assyria  and  Babylonia 
were  all  at  various  times  involved. 

A  photographic  glimpse  is  preserved  to  us  of  a 
"caravan  of  Ishmaelites  coming  down  from 
Gilead  with  their  camels  bearing  spicery,  balm 
and  ladanum",  to  whom  Joseph  was  sold  to  be 
carried  as  a  slave  to  Egypt.1  Another  stage  on 
the  route  was  the  "land  of  Havilah,  where  there 
is  gold;  and  the  gold  of  that  land  is  good;  there 
is  bdolakh  and  the  shoham  stone."2  David  gave 
gold  of  Ophir,3  and  the  ships  of  Solomon  and 
Hiram  went  to  Ophir  for  gold;4  but  the  gold 
they  brought  back  was  gold  of  Parvaim,5  which 
is  Sak  el  Farwain,  near  the  Wadi  er  Rumma  and 
west  of  Rass  in  central  Arabia.6  Ophir  appears 
as  a  son  of  Joktan,7  .obviously  a  coast-land.  It 
was  Glaser's  conclusion  that  Ophir  was  the  coast 
of  the  Persian  Gulf,  especially  the  central  por- 
tion where  the  caravan-route  terminated,  and 
that  the  gold  came  from  the  central  mountains. 
He  gives  out  of  Hamdani's  Jezirat  a  list  of  ten 
gold-fields,  all  important,  and  all  within  reach 
of  the  north-south  and  the  east-west  caravan- 


1  Gen.  XXXVII,  25-28     3  1  Chron.  XXIX,  4        6  2  Chron.  Ill,  6 

a  Gen.  II,  11-12  4  2  Chron.  VIII,  17-18 

•  Glaser,  Skizze,  347-350    7  Gen.  X,  29 

The  Talmud  notes  the  following  kinds  of  gold:  Rav 
Chisda  said  there  are  seven  kinds  of  gold:  gold,  good  gold,  the 
gold  of  Ophir,  purified  gold,  beaten  gold,  shut-up  gold,  and  gold  of 
Parvaim.  (Yoma,  44,2)  "Shut-up-gold",  I  Kings  VI,  21,  was 
the  rarest,  so  that  when  it  appeared  in  market,  all  shops  shut  up, 
for  there  could  be  no  sale  of  other  gold  before  that. 


OPHIR  VOYAGES  23 

routes.  Shoham,  and  other  gems  specified  for  the 
priests'  adornment,  came  from  the  same  moun- 
tains. Pearl,  for  bdolakh,  seems  preferable  to 
the  bdellium  of  the  English  versions.  The  mean- 
ing of  the  Hebrew  word  is  "precious";  in  a 
similar  passage  in  Ezekiel  a  word  meaning 
"costly"  is  rendered  as  coral  where  the  same 
substance  is  implied,  and  in  a  parallel  passage 
in  the  Apocalypse  it  appears  as  pearl.8 

There  are  indications  that  the  South  Arabian 
combination  known  as  Sheba  was  on  unfriendly 
terms  with  the  tribes  of  the  central  west,  the 
Medina  region,  who  had  long  controlled  access 
to  the  mineral  wealth  of  the  Yemama;  that  they 
had  established  rival  outposts  in  that  region; 
and  that  they  were  endeavoring  to  develop  a 
trade  independently  of  the  Ishmaelites.  Such 
trade  might  go  eastward  to  the  gulf  of  El  Katan, 
northeastward  to  the  mouth  of  the  Euphrates, 
or  southwestward  to  Sheba.  To  reach  Egypt 
or  Palestine  from  either  Sheba  or  Havilah  it 
must  go  by  sea,  and  timber  for  shipbuilding  was 
scarce  in  Arabia.  But  ships  carried  more  cargo, 
and  at  less  cost,  than  camel  caravans;  and  they 
avoided  the  exactions  of  intermediate  peoples. 
Hence  the  Egyptian  Punt  expeditions,  the 
Phoenician  voyaging  along  the  Arabian  coasts, 
the  piratical  policy  of  the  Mecca  coast-land,9 
and  the  various  enmities  that  culminated  in 


8  Bdellium    is    Balsamodendron    mukul;    myrrh    is    Balsamodendron 

myrrha.     Bdellium  is  inferior  to  myrrh. 
•  Cf.  Periplus,  20:    Breasted,   Ancient  Records  of  Egypt,  II,  287: 

"incense  was  brought    from   one    to    another,    as    a    return  for 

many  payments." 


24  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

Trajan's  conquest  and  destruction  of  the  Naba- 
taeans,  "robber  barons"  in  their  day;  and  in 
the  forced  migration  of  the  Abyssinians  from 
their  home  in  the  South  Arabian  incense-land  to 
the  table-land  of  Africa.  It  is  of  interest  that 
the  rulers  of  Abyssinia  still  claim  descent  from 
the  queen  of  Sheba  who  visited  Solomon. 

There  is  no  need  to  seek  for  Ophir  beyond 
Arabia,  and  we  may  safely  ignore  as  fanciful,  its 
identifications  with  Sofala  in  Rhodesia,  with 
Sovira  in  India,  or,  as  Josephus  would  have  it, 
with  "the  land  that  of  old  was  called  Ophir,  but 
now  the  Golden  Chersonese."10 

The  queen  of  Sheba  brought  to  Solomon  "a 
hundred  and  twenty  talents  of  gold,  and  of 
spices  very  great  store,  and  precious  stones; 
there  came  no  more  such  abundance  of  spices  as 
these  which  the  queen  of  Sheba  gave  to  king 
Solomon."11  Here  we  have,  clearly,  products  of 
both  central  and  southern  Arabia,  and  indication 
of  South  Arabian  power  at  that  time,  desirous  of 
direct  relations  with  peoples  dwelling  beyond 
the  rival  power  in  West  Arabia. 

The  accounts  of  the  Ophir  voyages  are  not 
entirely  consistent,  and  the  text  has,  perhaps, 
gathered  in  some  later,  and  mistaken,  com- 
mentary. But  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that 
the  voyages  were  made.  Egyptian  ships  went 
to  the  "land  of  Punt"  in  the  reign  of  Sahure, 
(28th  century  B.  C.)  and  brought  back  myrrh. 


10  Antiq.  Jud.  VIII,  2.     Glaser  (Skizze,  378)   suggests  affinity   be- 
tween and  tfireipos,  coast. 


"  1  Kings  X,  1-13:  2  Chron.  IX,  19. 


__ OPHIR  rOYAGES 25 

The  great  expedition  of  Queen  Hatshepsut  (15th 
century  B.  C.)  brought  back  "fragrant  woods, 
myrrh  resin,  fresh  myrrh  trees,  ebony,  ivory, 
green  gold,  cinnamon  wood,  khesyt  wood,  ihmut 
incense,  sonter  incense,  eye  cosmetic,  apes, 
monkeys,  dogs,  panther  skins,  natives  and  their 
children."  Incense-trees  were  planted  in  the 
court  of  the  temple  (Karnak),  "heaven  and  earth 
were  flooded  with  incense;  odors  are  in  the  great 
house;  the  heart  of  Amon  was  made  glad." 
In  the  reign  of  Ramses  III  (12th  century  B.  C.) 
Amon  opened  "the  ways  of  Punt;  the  Sand- 
dwellers  came  bowing  down  to  thy  name";  and 
that  Pharaoh  endowed  Amon  with  "gold,  silver, 
lapis  lazuli,  malachite,  precious  stones,  copper, 
garments  of  royal  linen,  jars,  fowl,  myrrh,  white 
incense,  cinnamon,  and  incense"  (stored,  of 
necessity,  in  a  special  Incense  House).12 


»  Breasted,  Ancient  Records  of  Egypt,  I,  161;  II,  246-295;  IV,  407. 

The  fresh  trees  from  Punt,  which  Breasted  renders  as  myrrh, 
appear  in  the  inscriptions  at  Deir-el-Bahri,  and  clearly  enough,  in 
the  writer's  judgment,  to  be  recognized  as  frankincense  trees.  In 
this  opinion  he  is  supported  by  Dr.  B.  L.  Robinson  of  the  Gray 
Herbarium  at  Harvard.  Myrrh,  with  its  rudimentary  clover- 
shaped  leaves,  they  certainly  were  not. 

Dr.  Breasted  informs  me,  however,  that  the  translation  rests 
chiefly  on  Greek  sources  and  may  be  incorrect,  and  that  the 
Egyptian  word  may  be  no  more  than  a  current  commercial  term 
for  a  group  of  fragrant  gums  or  resins.  The  Egyptian  word  is 
'ntyw. 

Whether  the  substance  translated  "cinnamon  wood"  was  the 
true  cinnamon  may  be  doubted.  Dr.  Breasted  informs  me  that 
the  word  designates  nothing  more  than  a  wood  or  bark  of  fragrance 
or  agreeable  taste.  The  Egyptian  word  is  tyspsy  which  is  from  the 
root  spsy  meaning  to  sweeten. 


THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 


Solomon  and  Hiram  were  associated  in  the 
Ophir  voyages.  According  to  the  account  on 
Kings, 

King  Solomon  made  a  navy  of  ships  in  Ezion-Geber,  which  is 
beside  Eloth,  on  the  shore  of  the  Red  Sea,  in  the  land  of  Edom. 
And  Hiram  sent  in  the  navy  his  servants,  shipmen  that  had 
knowledge  of  the  sea,  with  the  servants  of  Solomon.  And  they 
came  to  Ophir,  and  fetched  from  thence  gold,  four  hundred 
and  twenty  talents,  and  brought  it  to  king  Solomon.13 

The  account  in  Chronicles  varies  only  as  to  the 
size  of  the  cargo,  which  it  states  as  four  hundred 
and  fifty  talents.  So  far  there  is  no  occasion  for 
inquiry. 

The  second  section  of  the  story  is  to  the  effect 
that 

The  navy  also  of  Hiram,  that  brought  gold  from  Ophir,  brought 
in  from  Ophir  great  plenty  of  almug  trees,  and  precious  stones. 
And  the  king  made  of  the  almug  trees  pillars  for  the  house  of  the 
Lord,  and  for  the  king's  house,  harps  also  and  psalteries  for  the 
singers;  there  came  no  such  almug  trees,  nor  were  seen  unto  this 
day.14 

The  account  in  Chronicles  calls  them  "algum 
trees",  and  says  that  they  were  used  for  "paths", 
not  pillars;  referring  to  the  inclined  ramps  by 
which  the  temple  was  approached.15  But  the 
LXX  knows  neither  almug  nor  algum;  in  Kings 

"1  Kings  IX,  26-28:  2  Chron.  VIII,  17-18 

"1  Kings  X,  11-12:  2  Chron.  IX,  10-11.  Glaser  (Skizze  358-366) 
identifies  the  algum  with  ushu  of  the  Assyrian  inscriptions  from 
which  was  made  the  balm  that  the  Chinese  knew  as  sti-ho;  but  this 
was  styrax  or  liquidambar,  and  grew  in  Palestine,  so  that  there 
would  have  been  no  occasion  to  ship  it  from  the  Persian  Gulf. 

»  Almug  trees,  D'OKtfK 
Algum  trees,  'D^DUv'X 

Pillars,  inroaTt)pLyp.a.Ta  "tyDD  Gesenius  gives  "support,  balustrade" 
from  "jyo  .  Paths,  d^a/Sao-eis  fll^DO  >  Gesenius  "stairs"  (better, 
ramps)  from 


OPHIR    VOYAGES  27 

it  says  merely  "squared  timbers",16  and  in 
Chronicles  "pine  timbers";17  and  elsewhere  in 
Chronicles  algum,  cedar  and  cypress  are  said  to 
have  been  rafted  down  from  Lebanon.18  The 
word  is  of  foreign  origin,  probably  Tamil;  but  it 
seems  to  have  crept  into  the  text  at  a  later  date, 
when  the  Indian  wood  had  become  familiar,  and 
when  its  name  had  been  applied  to  similar 
domestic  woods.  Mookerji  suggests  the  aghil 
of  Malabar19  (Chickrassia  tabularis,  Chittagong 
wood,  or  white  cedar),  a  fine  wood  for  furniture, 
yielding  a  transparent  gum,  and  astringent  bark, 
and  flowers  from  which  red  and  yellow  dyes  are 
made.  But  there  is  no  evidence  of  its  exporta- 
tion from  India  until  recent  times.  It  is  more 
probable  that  the  name  was  derived  from  the 
wood  known  in  Pali  as  laghu,  Sanskrit  agaru™ 
(Aquilaria  agallocha)  the  aloe  (Hebr.  ahalim)  of 
Prov.  VII,  17,  which  in  Numbers  XXIV,  6,  is 
associated  with  cedar.21  The  wood  of  this  tree 
is  of  less  value  than  the  gum,  which  was  used 
medicinally  and  as  a  perfume,  and  is  still  used 
largely  in  China  for  incense  and  joss-sticks. 
The  wood  to  which  this  passage  refers  may  have 
been  the  Sanders  or  red  sandal-wood  of  South 


xeX«<77T(i:  Vulg.  Hgna  thyina:  1  Kings  X,  11. 
Trefaiva:  Vulg.  ligna  thyina:  2  Chron.  IX,  10-11. 

18  £6Xa  ntbpiva  nail  apKcvOiva  Kal  irebKiva:  Vulg.  ligna  cedrina  et  arceu- 
tina  et  pinea:  2  Chron.  II,  7.  Cedar,  fir  and  algum,  D^n*» 
D^TD  »  D'lOI^K  •  "  Hist,  of  Indian  Shipping,  93. 

20  Absent  from  the  LXX:  Vulg.  aloe.  Some  such  form  as  lagu-im 
might  readily  become  algum. 

81  LXX,  (TK-nval,  K&poi  :  Vulg.  Tabernacula,  cedri. 
Aloe,  D^PIK  (Prov.  VII,  17)  LXX,  UWQ.\I&W 
Lign  aloes,  cedar,  D^rttO  >  D^H&G  Num.  XXIV,  6. 


28  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

India  (Pterocarpus  santalinus),  used  for  dyeing 
leather  and  staining  wood,  and  in  India  for  mark- 
ing idols  and  staining  the  forehead  in  caste- 
markings.  The  wood  is  used  for  house-posts, 
plough-poles  and  implements,  and  for  carved 
work,  idols,  boxes  and  picture-frames.22  The 
JR  renders  it  as  "sandal-wood."  The  true 
sandal-wood  (Santalum  album,  Sanskrit  chan- 
dana)  it  could  not  have  been;  that  is  a  scrub  ever- 
green of  South  India,  too  small  and  too  soft 
for  pillars,  walks  or  musical  instruments.  In 
David's  time,  we  are  informed,  the  musical  in- 
struments wherewith  Israel  played  before  the 
Lord  were  made  of  cypress.23 

Indian  timber  came  to  the  ports  of  the  Persian 
Gulf  during  the  Neo-Babylonian  period.  Nebu- 
chadrezzar's palace  at  Birs  Nimrud,  built  be- 
tween 604  and  562  B.  C.,  had  beams  of  Indian 
cedar,  one  of  which  is  in  the  British  Museum. 
The  temple  of  the  Moon-god  at  Mugheir,  re- 
built by  Nabonidus  between  555  and  538  B.  C., 
had  wood  reported  as  teak,  but  more  probably 
Indian  cedar.  Later,  about  80  A.  D.,  the 
Periplus  tells  of  imports  at  Ommana,  Obollah 
and  Charax  Spasini  of  Indian  sandal-wood, 
timbers  of  teak  and  logs  of  rose-wood  and 
ebony.24  But  for  the  date  of  Solomon  there  is  no 
confirmation  of  such  trade.  Indian  literature 
is  definite  as  to  sea-trade  in  the  Buddhist  period. 
The  Digha  Nikaya25  mentions  voyages  out  of 

22  Watt,  Commercial  Products  of   India,  72-73,  294,  909,  976-977 

"2  Sam.  VI,  5.    M  Periplus,  36. 

*  1,  222:  Rhys  Davids,  JRAS   1899,  p.  432. 


OPHIR  VOYAGES  29 

sight  of  land;  but  it  would  be  unsafe  to  assume 
from  its  testimony  the  use  of  shore-sighting 
birds  earlier  than  the  6th  or  7th  century  B.  C. 
This  mention  of  Indian  timber  is  probably  a 
post-exilic  gloss,  possibly  dating  later  than  the 
LXX,  250  B.  C.,  and  added  to  the  confused  ac- 
count of  two  separate  shipments;  cedar,  cypress 
and  marble  from  Lebanon,  and  incense  trees  from 
the  land  of  Punt. 

The  third  section  of  the  story  tells  us  that26 

The  king  had  at  sea  a  navy  of  Tarshish  with  the  navy  of  Hiram; 
once  every  three  years  came  the  navy  of  Tarshish,  bringing  gold, 
and  silver,  ivory,  and  apes,  and  peacocks. 

In  Chronicles  it  is  said  that  "the  king  had 
ships  that  went  to  Tarshish."  The  LXX  in 
Kings  says  "hewn  stones,  and  timbers",27  and 
in  Chronicles  "teeth  of  ivory,  and  monkeys."28 
In  neither  case  does  it  mention  peacocks. 

Whether  or  not  the  account  in  Chronicles  is 
inconsistent  with  that  in  Kings  depends  upon 
the  original  meaning  of  the  words  "Ophir"  and 
"Tarshish."  If  at  the  time  the  texts  were 
written  these  words  had  definite  geographical 
meanings  like  those  now  assigned  to  them,  there 

The  cedar  found   at   Mugheir  could  have  come  from  Lebanon, 
floated  down  the  Euphrates. 
*  1  Kings  X,  22;  2  Chron.  IX,  21. 

opevr&it    Ko.1    ir€\cKr)T&i>:     Vulg.     dentes    elephantoruni,    ct 
simias,  et  pavos. 

t\t<pavTlvuv  Kal  TridrjKuv:  Vulg.  ebur,  et  simias,  et  pavos. 
Navy  of  Tarshish,  j/aOs  6ap<r£s  IK.  X,  22  g»&nn  TWIN 
Ivory,  apes,  peacocks,  D"3ni   D^Qpl   D'arUIP   IK.  X,  22.       For 
the  king's   ships   went  to  Tarshish;  vote  T$  /ScurtXe!  &rope6ero  «fe 
GapaeZs    Sjn&nn  TOfrl  ^O?  nVJfcTO  2  Chr.  IX,  21. 
Ivory,  apes,  and  peacocks,  0"3im   D'SlpI  D'3rW  2  Chr.  IX;  21. 


30  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

would  be  a  manifest  inconsistency;  for  a  ship 
bound  westward  to  a  Tarshish  in  southern  Spain 
could  not  well  include  in  the  same  voyage  an 
Ophir  in  southern  or  eastern  Arabia.  But  if 
Tarshish  means  no  more  than  "subject  peoples", 
and  Ophir  a  "coastland",  and  if  the  appearance 
of  Ophir  in  the  tribal  genealogy  of  Genesis  is  due 
to  the  attempt  of  some  interpreter  of  later 
date  to  give  the  name  a  definite  application 
which  it  did  not  rightly  possess,  there  would  be 
no  reason  why  either  word  should  not  apply  to  a 
distant  voyage  in  any  direction;  to  "colonial 
ports"  such  as  Tartessus,  or  to  "foreign  coasts" 
such  as  those  of  the  Red  Sea  or  the  Persian 
Gulf.29 

There  is  a  similar  appearance  of  Tarshish  in 
Isaiah  (LXVI,  19)  in  a  combination  of  peoples, 
probably  Central  Arabian:  Tarshish,  Pul  and 
Lud,  where  Jeremiah  (XLVI,  9)  has  Cush,  Put 
and  Ludim,  and  Ezekiel  (XXX,  5)  Ethiopia, 
Put  and  Lud  and  (XXVII,  10)  Persians,  Lud 
and  Put.  Cush,  and  its  equivalent  Ethiopia, 
represent  non-Semitic  elements  in  Arabia, 
whereof  the  Persians  became  increasingly  numer- 
ous toward,  and  after,  their  overthrow  of  Neo- 
Babylonia.30 


29  Tarshish:  {J^tJnri  from  t^tSH  "to  break  down"  might  mean  no  more 
than  "subject  peoples";  that  is,  any  colony  or  foreign  land;  and  its 
similarity  in  sound  to  Tarsus  or  Tartessus  would  readily  extend  it 
to  cover  them  specifically,  while  it  would  have  applied  more  cor- 
rectly to  certain  parts  of  Arabia.  tJ^KHfl  SJK  the  "ship  of 
Tarshish",  would  be  a  ship  bound  for  foreign  or  distant  shores. 
This  rendering  would  be  unaffected  by  the  fact  that 
Tartessus  in  southern  Spain  is  the  Greek  equivalent  of  the 
Aramaic  form  of  Tarshish;  for  it  explains  the  name  as  mean- 


OPHIR    FOYAGES 


Silver  was  no  Indian  product.  It  was  mined 
sparingly  in  the  Yemama,  whence  theOphir  ships 
could  have  brought  it  back  to  Solomon.  But 
Solomon  was  not  seeking  silver;  and  the  Periplus 
mentions  silver  plate  and  coin  among  the  im- 
ports at  several  Arabian,  African  and  Indian 
ports.31  Silver  came  also,  and  in  larger  quantity, 
from  Tartessus,  and  may  have  been  interpolated 
here  because  of  the  mention  of  Tarshish. 

Ivory  appears  in  the  Hebrew  text  in  a  doubt- 
ful hybrid  word,  not  elsewhere  found,  and  readily 
divisible  into  two  words  meaning  "ivory  and 
ebony."  Both  were  African  products  and  appear 
constantly  in  the  records  of  Egyptian  voyages. 
We  may  assume  that  both  were  in  the  cargo  of 
Solomon's  similar  ventures,  and  restore  ebony  to 
the  place  it  originally  held  in  the  text.32 

Apes  and  peacocks  are  native  in  South  India, 
and  the  text  seems  to  use  Indian  words;  for 
apes,  qoph,  suggesting  Sanskrit  kapif3  and  for 
peacocks,  thukki,  suggesting  tokei,  the  poetical 
Tamil-Malayalam  name,  "bird  with  the  splendid 

ing   "dependency"   or  "colony"   of  Tyre,   just   as  the    Roman 

Colonia  Agrippina  became  known  as  Colonia  merely,  or  Cologne. 

Any  other  dependency  could  be  referred  to  by  the  same  word. 

80  Periplus,  33.     Hamdani  mentions  a  Persian  mining  community  at 

El  Ausaja  in  central  Arabia,  with  thousands  of  "Magi"  and  two 

fire-temples.     (Glaser,  Skizze,  348). 

31  Periplus,  6,  8,  10,  24,  28,  49,  56. 

32  The     Hebrew    form    is    suspect:    D^DHJ^     would     be    an  im- 

probable hybrid  with  some  Indian  word  such  as  ibha;  but  it 
divides  so  readily  into  D>J2ni  \W  which  is  exactly  the  form  that 
appears  in  Ezekiel,  that  ebony,  which  was  associated  with  ivory 
in  the  returns  of  the  Egyptian  Punt  expeditions,  may  be  given 
a  like  place  in  the  similar  ventures  of  Solomon. 


32  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

tail."34  But  monkeys  are  native  in  Africa,  and 
appear  in  the  return  cargoes  of  several  of  the 
Egyptian  Punt  expeditions,  distinguished  as 
anau  and  kop,  making  it  unnecessary  to  go  to 
India  for  the  Hebrew  word;  the  LXX  uses  the 
ordinary  word  for  monkey,  and  omits  the  pea- 
fowl altogether.35  The  Baveru  Jataka  tells  of 
Indian  merchants  who  shipped  peacocks  to 
Babylon;  it  dates  from  about  400  B.  C.,  and  its 
facts  are  a  century  or  two  earlier.36  The  Sup- 
paraka  Jataka  records  the  perils  undergone  at 
sea  for  four  months  by  a  company  of  seven 
hundred  merchants  who  sailed  from  the  port  of 
Bharukaccha  ("marsh  of  Bharu",37  on  the 
Narbada  river,  the  Barygaza  of  the  Periplus).38 
But  this  Buddhistic  evidence  would  support  a 
post-exilic  text  only.  Aristophanes  mentions 
peacocks,  and  his  word  is  derived  from  the 
Persian.39  Like  the  barnyard  fowl,  the  peacock 
reached  Mediterranean  lands  after  the  Persian 
conquest.40 

It  is  probable  that  these  birds  were  ostriches, 
and  that  the  Tamil  name  influenced  the  inter- 
pretation at  a  much  later  date.  Ostrich  plumes 
appear  with  gold  dust  in  the  cargo  of  a  19th 
Dynasty  Punt  expedition.41  They  were  used  in 

33  Cf.  Kennedy,  JRAS,  1898,  248-287. 

34  Mookerji,  op.  cit.,  93. 

35  Diimichen,  Hist.  Inschriften,  ii,  pi.  XX 
38  Jataka  III,  339,  Cambridge  ed. 

37  Jataka  IV,  138-142. 

38  Periplus,  42-49 

89  Birds,  102,  269:  TOWS,  Persian  tavus 

«  Cf.  Peters,  The  Cock,  JAOS,  XXXIII,  pt.  4,  363-396 


»         •  »  *   *      '  •  •*•»'    J  "*•» J '   '    '  >  ' 
^>^»^         '  >  '    i      >i>j>        i 


EGYPTIAN  SHIP 

from  the  Punt  Reliefs  in  the  Temple  of  Queen  Hatshepsut  at  Deir-el-Bahari 

Reproduced  from  Chatterton,  Sailing  Ships. 
J.  B.  Lippincott  Co.,  publishers 


GREEK  GALLEY 

from  an   Athenian   Vase 


PHOENICIAN  GALLEY 

A   Model   Exhibited  in  the   Commercial   Museum,  Philadelphia 
Based  on  the  Sennacherib  relief  excavated   by  Layard 


OPHIR  VOYAGES  33 

some  of  the  royal  head-dresses  and  as  decorations 
for  the  royal  chariot  horses.  The  ostrich  plume 
was  also  a  hieroglyphic  sign  for  "the  west,"  from 
the  abundance  of  ostriches  throughout  the  Libyan 
desert.42 

The  ostrich  was  the  "crying  bird"  that  dwelt 
in  the  desert;43 

"I  will  make  a  wailing  like  the  jackals, 
And  a  mourning  like  the  ostriches."44 

"The  beasts  of  the  field  shall  honour  Me, 
The  jackals  and  the  ostriches; 
Because  I  give  waters  in  the  wilderness, 
And  rivers  in  the  desert."4* 

The  first  station  of  the  Exodus  of  the  Israelites, 
in  the  desert,  on  the  Egyptian  side  of  the  Red 
Sea,  was  Succoth,46  which  was  the  Egyptian 
nome  Thuku,47  the  abode  of  the  god  Turn,  also 
called  "lord  of  An,"  which  was  a  name  for  the 
region  at  the  head  of  the  gulf  of  Suez,  now  the 
Bitter  Lakes.48  Within  this  nome  of  Thuku  was 
the  store-city  of  Pithom,  where  the  Israelites 
had  dwelt  in  captivity.  These  plumes  of  the 
"crying  bird,"  whether  they  came  from  Nubia 
or  the  Sudan,49  or  from  the  Libyan  desert, 
reached  the  Israelites  through  Thuku,  and  could 

41  Breasted,  Ancient  Records,  III,  37 

'*  Griffith,  A  Collection  of  Hieroglyphs,  60-61 

43  D'Oil  from  nJn  to  make  a  strident  cry. 

This  is  not  so  unlike  D^DD*  which  might  thus  be  a  copyist's 
error. 

44  Micah  I,  8        «  Isa.  XLIII,  20 

«  Ex.  XII,  37:  XIII,  20:  Num.  XXXIII,  5 

47  Brugsch,   Aeg.  Zeitschr.  1875,  p.  7 

48  Naville,  The  Store  City  of  Pithom,  7:  Breasted,  Ancient  Records, 

III,  638 

49  Agatharchides,  57 


34  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

thus  have  been  called  thukki  birds.  For  Thuku 
was  Egypt's  "eastern  gate"  through  which  all 
trade  must  pass.  Later,  when  another  "crying 
bird,"  the  peacock,  had  traveled  through  the 
Persian  Empire  from  India  to  Palestine,  its 
Tamil  name  tokei  could  have  been  identified 
with  the  Thuku  desert-birds  of  the  Red  Sea 
trade.  It  seems  unnecessary,  therefore,  to  go 
to  India  for  the  thukki,  or  to  hold  the  text  re- 
sponsible for  this  anachronistic  rabbinical  ren- 
dering, "peacocks."  Instead  of  our  modern 
versions,  the  true  meaning  of  this  passage  may 
be  "every  third  year  the  king's  ships  sailed 
down  the  coast,  returning  with  gold,  ivory, 
ebony,  monkeys  and  ostrich  plumes." 

With  these  restorations  it  becomes  probable 
that  the  Ophir  voyages  were  similar  in  destination 
and  purpose  to  the  Punt  expeditions,  that  their 
return  cargoes  were  practically  identical,  and 
that  they  did  not  extend  beyond  the  shores  of 
the  Gulf  of  Aden. 

The  largest  item  in  the  cargoes  brought  back 
from  the  Ophir  voyages  was  gold.  Central 
Arabia  and  Nubia  were  the  principal  sources  of 
gold  at  that  time.  The  accounts  of  the  visit  of 
the  Queen  of  Sheba  give  the  impression  of  an 
effort  to  open  up  a  sea  trade  in  gold  which 
should  make  both  parties  independent  of  other, 
and  perhaps  unfriendly,  peoples.  Voyages  to 
Sabaean  ports  would  naturally  follow  a  visit 
from  the  Sabaean  queen.  If  caravan  routes  were 
available  from  the  gold-mines  to  her  country, 
the  operating  costs  alone  would  have  tended  to 
prevent  a  longer  sea-journey.  Such  routes  were 


OPHIR    FOYAGES  35 

available  from  the  Yemama  to  Sheba,  and  the 
Nubian  caravan  routes  came  down  to  the  op- 
posite shore  of  the  Red  Sea,  giving  the  advantage 
of  a  considerable  competing  supply. 

The  following  table  of  comparative  distances 
may  be  helpful: 

Caravan  Routes: 

Center  of  Jebel  Shammar  to  Basra 400  miles 

"   Bay  of  Bahrein  .  .     400     " 

"   Medina    300     " 

"  Sanaa •.     800     " 

"  Muza 950     " 

"   Jerusalem  via 

Taima    800     " 

•"  Jerusalem  via 

Medina    650     " 

Water  Routes: 

Ezion  Geber  to  Muza 1250  miles 

Muza  to  Bay  of  Bahrein 2350     " 

Day's  sail  80  to  100  miles 

Day's  caravan  journey  30  to    40      " 

Round  trip,  Ezion  Geber  to  Muza 2500  miles,    31  days 

Add  caravan  journey,  Jebel  Shammar  to 

Muza 1900       "       63     " 

Total : 4400  miles,    94  days 

Round  trip,  Ezion  Geber  to  Bay  of  Bahrein  7200  miles,    90  days 
Caravan  iourney  Jebel  Shammar  to  Bay  of 

Bahrein 800       "       20     " 

Total : 8000  miles,  1 10  days 

The  duration  of  favorable  trade  winds  in  the 
Red  Sea  was  about  60  days  per  season,  in  either 
direction.50  A  vessel  sailing  from  Aden  on  the 
easterly  monsoon  would  meet  contrary  winds  on 

60  Periplus  56,  57 


36  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

entering  the  Persian  Gulf.  From  these  factors 
it  can  be  deduced  that  a  Red  Sea  voyage  would 
not  have  been  extended,  unless  under  some 
unusual  emergency,  beyond  the  coasts  of  the 
Gulf  of  Aden.  While  the  round  trip  between 
Ezion-Geber  and  Bahrein  could  have  been  made 
within  the  three  years  stated  in  the  text,  we  are 
informed  only  that  the  voyages  were  made  once 
every  three  years,  and  not  that  they  took  the 
entire  three  years  to  make.  The  few  facts  avail- 
able do  not  seem  to  support  a  different  desti- 
nation for  the  Ophir  voyages  than  for  the  Punt 
expeditions.  The  sea  trading  between  Babylon 
and  western  India  in  the  Chaldean  period  was 
an  independent  enterprise.  Because  of  the 
periodicity  of  the  monsoons,  a  voyage  between 
India  and  Egypt,  or  between  India  and  the 
Persian  Gulf,  involved  less  difficulty  than  one 
between  Egypt  and  the  Euphrates.  It  seems 
improbable  that  there  was  any  circumnavigation 
of  Arabia  prior  to  the  expedition  of  Scylax  of 
Caryanda,  which  was  organized  by  the  Persian 
government  for  purposes  of  exploration,  and 
occurred  about,  or  soon  after,  500  B.  C.61 

A  later  king  also  essayed  the  Ophir  trade,  but 
met  with  disaster,  whereof  the  combined  ac- 
counts in  Kings  and  Chronicles  perhaps  fail  to 
give  the  full  details.  Jehoshaphat,  king  of 
Judah,  "made  ships  of  Tarshish  to  go  to  Ophir 
for  gold:  but  they  went  not;  for  the  ships  were 
broken  at  Ezion-Geber."  Ahaziah,  king  of 
Israel,  proposed  partnership  in  the  venture,  say- 

61  Herodotus  IV,  44 


OPHIR   VOYAGES  37 

ing  to  Jehoshaphat,  "Let  my  servants  go  with 
thy  servants  in  the  ships.  But  Jehoshaphat 
would  not."  Thus  far  in  Kings.  In  the  LXX 
the  whole  passage  is  lacking.  But  according  to 
Chronicles  the  two  kings  did  go  into  partnership, 
whereupon  Eliezer  prophesied  against  Jehosha- 
phat for  being  so  weak  as  to  join  himself  with 
one  so  wicked  as  Ahaziah,  observing  that  the 
Lord  had  destroyed  his  works.  At  all  events, 
"the  ships  were  broken  and  were  not  able  to  go  to 
Tarshish."62 

Here  again  the  apparent  inconsistency  in  the 
use  of  the  words  "Tarshish"  and  "Ophir"  may 
be  due  only  to  our  literal  geographical  interpre- 
tation.63 Whether  the  disaster  occurred  upon  a 
quarrel  between  the  partners,  or  by  a  storm  that 
wrecked  the  ships  while  under  construction,  or 
from  hostile  intervention  by  some  sheikh  in  the 
Medina  district  who  controlled  the  caravan 


62 1  Kings  XXII,  49-50;  2  Chron.  XX,  35-37 

68  That  Jewish  commentators  did  not  ascribe  to  Tarshish  a  definite 
location  is  indicated  by  the  following  passage  from  the  Talmud: 
"Tradition  records  that  the  ladder  in  Gen.  28,  12  was  8,000  miles 
wide,  for  it  is  written,  'And  behold  the  angels  of  God  ascending 
and  descending  upon  it.'  Angels  ascending,  being  in  the  plural, 
cannot  be  fewer  than  two  at  a  time,  and  so  likewise  must  those 
descending,  so  that  when  they  passed  they  were  four  abreast  at 
least.  In  Dan.  10,  6  it  is  said  of  the  angel,  'His  body  was  like 
Tarshish',  and  there  is  a  story  that  Tarshish  extended  2,000  miles." 
(Chullin,  91,  2).  RV  and  JR  say  "His  body  was  like  a  beryl", 
but  it  is  rather  the  golden  stone  of  Tarshish,  signifying  a  golden 
glory  about  the  angel.  This  in  turn  is  curiously  suggestive  of  the 
Suvarna  bhumi  or  "golden  coast"  of  the  Hindus  and  may  have 
been  the  reason  for  Josephus's  identification  of  Ophir  (or  Tarshish) 
with  the  Golden  Chersonese. 


38  THE    SHIP    "TYRE" 

routes  and  therefore  objected  to  the  "freedom  of 
the  sea",  we  have  no  means  of  determining. 

Of  Ophir  voyages  no  more  appears  in  the 
Hebrew  scriptures.  Thereafter  gold  came  to 
Palestine  over  the  caravan-routes,  when  it  came; 
but  successive  conquests  in  Arabia  by  Assyrians, 
Chaldeans  and  Persians  drew  the  output  of  the 
Arabian  mines  eastward,  and  the  Persians 
possessed  themselves  of  much  of  central  Arabia. 
They  conquered  Egypt  as  the  Chaldeans  con- 
quered Palestine  and  Syria,  and  their  "royal 
road"  from  Sardis  to  Susa  displaced  the  older 
Mesopotamian  routes.  But  a  remnant  of  the 
trade  survived,  for  Phoenicians  driven  by  the 
Persians  from  Chaldea  settled  at  Gerrha,  on  the 
shore  of  the  Persian  Gulf  at  the  terminus  of  a 
Yemama  caravan-route,54  and  Sabaeans  in  Ye- 
men waxed  rich  from  their  control  of  another 
Yemama  route  and  of  the  sea-route  from  India, 
which  they  turned  to  good  account  in  their  deal- 
ings with  Ptolemaic  Egypt.55 

The  Sheba  mission  brought  gold,  spices,  and 
incense,  and  the  Ophir  voyages  gold,  spices,  in- 
cense, ivory,  ebony  and  other  incidentals. 
These  were  used  in  the  temple  and  the  palace; 
hence  their  prominence  in  the  priestly  tradition. 


That  Jewish  commentators  did  not  consider  the  text  of  Chroni- 
cles to  be  absolutely  reliable  is  indicated  in  the  following  passage 
from  the  Talmud: 

Between  Azel  and  Azel  (I  Chron.  VIII,  38  and  IX,  44)  there 
are  four  hundred  camelloads  of  critical  researches  due  to  the 
presence  of  manifold  contradictions.  (P'sachim  62,  2). 

M  Strabo,  XVI,  1,  5 

M  Agatharchides,  de  mari  Erythraeo,  97-102 


PROFANATION  AND  PILLAGE          39 


V. 

In  the  days  of  Israel's  adversity  the  temple 
suffered  first.  Both  Nineveh  and  Babylon 
looked  upon  Jerusalem  as  a  vassal  to  be  taxed 
or  a  rebel  to  be  plundered,  according  to  the 
event.  The  first  onset  came  from  Nineveh. 
Pul,  a  general  in  the  Assyrian  army,  after  over- 
throwing a  decadent  dynasty,  had  assumed  the 
royal  title  as  Tiglath-pileser  III,  king  of  Assyria. 
He  had  conquered  Babylon  in  729  B.  C.  and  had 
forced  its  priests  to  crown  him  there.  His  armies 
had  also  fought  their  way  to  the  sacred  "moun- 
tain of  the  north",  Demavend  (Bikni,  Elburz). 
It  is  to  his  own  account  of  these  triumphs  that 
we  must  look  for  explanation  of  the  scornful 
allusions  of  Isaiah.  The  caption  of  his  Nimrud 
inscription  is  sufficient:1 

The  palace  of  Tiglath-pileser,  the  great  king,  the  mighty  king, 
king  of  the  whole  world,  king  of  Assyria,  King  of  Sumer  and 
Akkad,  king  of  the  four  quarters  of  the  world;  the  hero,  the 
warrior,  who  under  the  protection  of  Ashur,  his  lord,  dashed 
to  pieces  like  pots  all  those  who  were  disobedient  to  him, 
swept  over  them  like  a  cyclone,  and  gave  them  to  the  winds; 
the  king  who  at  the  call  of  Ashur,  Shamash,  and  Marduk, 
the  great  gods,  marched  here  and  there  and  ruled  over  lands 
from  the  Salt  Sea  of  Bit-Yakin  to  Mount  Bikni  in  the  east, 
and  from  the  Western  Sea  to  Egypt,  and  from  the  horizon  to 
the  zenith,  and  exercised  kingship  over  them. 

Babylon  revolted  in  722  and  crowned  Merodach- 
baladan  legitimate  king.  Sennacherib,  who  be- 
gan to  reign  at  Nineveh  in  70S,  invaded  Palestine 

1  Harper,  Assyrian  and  Babylonian  Literature,  p.  52. 


40  THE    SHIP    "TYRE" 

in  701  and  took  its  fortified  cities.  Hezekiah, 
king  of  Judah,  purchased  immunity  by  paying 
three  hundred  talents  of  silver  and  thirty  talents 
of  gold,  including  all  the  silver  that  was  in  the 
temple  and  all  the  treasure  in  the  palace,  while 
the  gold  was  cut  from  the  very  doors  and  door- 
posts of  the  temple.2  A  brief  lamentation  of 
Isaiah  is  preserved:3 

Yea,  it  is  done;  that  fortified  cities 

Should  be  laid  waste  into  ruinous  heaps. 

Therefore  their  inhabitants  were  of  small  power, 

They  were  dismayed  and  confounded; 

They  were  as  the  grass  of  the  field, 

And  as  the  green  herb, 

As  the  grass  on  the  housetops, 

And  as  corn  blasted  before  it  is  grown  up. 

The  vultures  were  gathering;  upon  the  report 
of  the  sickness  of  Hezekiah,  the  king  of  Babylon, 
Merodach-baladan,  sent  a  letter  and  gifts.  Heze- 
kiah was  so  imprudent  as  to  show  the  messenger 
all  his  treasure-house,  "the  silver,  and  the  gold, 
and  the  spices,  and  the  precious  oil,  and  the 
house  of  his  armor,"  and  Isaiah  foretold  that  all 
these  things  would  be  carried  to  Babylon,  and 
that  the  king's  sons  would  become  officers  in  the 
palace  of  the  king  of  Babylon.4 

Instead  of  sweet  spices  there  shall  be  rottenness; 
Instead  of  a  girdle  rags; 


Thy  men  shall  fall  by  the  sword, 

And  thy  mighty  in  the  war. 

And  her  gates  shall  lament  and  mourn; 

And  utterly  bereft  she  shall  sit  upon  the  ground.1 

*  2  Kings  XVIII,  13-16     «  2  Kings  XX,  12-18 
»  2  Kings  XIX,  25-26       B  Is.  Ill,  24-26 


PROF  A  NA  TIP  N  AND  PILLAGE          41 

Sennacherib,  in  694  B.  C,  directed  an  expedi- 
tion against  the  Elamites  on  the  Persian  Gulf. 
The  land  was  inaccessible  to  an  army,  and  he 
was  obliged  to  construct  a  navy  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Euphrates.  For  this  purpose  he  brought 
officers  and  workmen  from  Tyre.  Sennacherib 
conquered  Babylon  in  691  B.  C.  and  razed  it  to 
the  ground.  The  Phoenicians  then  acquired  a 
larger  influence  in  the  Persian  Gulf  and  along  the 
Euphrates,  as  sea-traders  for  Assyria;  to  such  an 
extent  that  Tyre  seems  to  have  come  to  repre- 
sent Babylon  in  the  mind  of  Judah.6  Isaiah  in 
his  Burden  of  Babylon  remarks  of  it:7 

"Behold,  the  land  of  the  Chaldeans — this  is  the  people  that  was 
not,  when  Asshur  founded  it  for  shipmen" — 

This  substitution  of  Tyre  for  Babylon  was 
greatly  extended  in  the  prophecies  of  Ezekiel, 
who,  being  a  captive  of  Babylon,  could  not 
openly  foretell  her  destruction. 

The  prophets  of  the  adversity,  Isaiah,  Jere- 
miah and  Ezekiel,  all  ascribed  the  sufferings  of 
Israel  to  her  sins,  and  viewed  her  conquerors  as 
temporary  instruments  of  the  Lord's  wrath. 
They  predicted  a  similar  fate  for  most  of  Israel's 
neighbors,  and  in  turn  for  the  conquerors  them- 
selves. The  fall  of  the  oppressor  was  prophesied 
more  or  less  directly,  according  to  circumstances. 
Isaiah  gives  the  doom  of  Philistia,8  the  burdens 
of  Moab9  and  Damascus,10  the  warning  to  the 
people  tall  and  of  a  glossy  skin11  (who  were  tribes 

6  Somewhat  as  Sidon  was  associated  with  Persia  by  the    Greeks: 

Cf.  Aeschylus,  Persat,  290-471 

Ms.  XXIII,  13  (JR)     •  Is.  XIV  'Is.  XV 

»  Is.  XVII  "  Is.  XVIII 


42  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

of  central  and  southern  Arabia),  and  the  burdens 
of  Egypt,12  the  wilderness  of  the  sea,  Dumah, 
Arabia,13  the  Valley  of  Vision,14  and  Tyre.15  His 
longest  doom  prophecy  is  of  the  fate  of  Asshur,16 
into  which  is  interpolated  the  Burden  of  Baby- 
lon17— which  was  not  in  Isaiah's  time  an  oppres- 
sor of  Israel,  and  in  this  song  seems  to  stand  for 
Nineveh,  whose  king  had  appropriated  the 
crown  of  Babylon.  The  prophecy  begins  with 
the  immediate  oppressor18 

O  Asshur,  the  rod  of  Mine  anger, 

In  whose  hand  as  a  staff  is  Mine  indignation! 

who,  because  he  believed  his  conquest  to  be  the 
result  of  his  own  strength,  was  to  be  punished 
for  his  arrogant  heart  and  haughty  lips: 

Should  the  ax  boast  itself  against  him  that  heweth  therewith  ? 
Should  the  saw  magnify  itself  against  him  that  moveth  it? 
Therefore  thus  saith  the  Lord,  the  God  of  hosts:   O  My  people 
that  dwellest  in  Zion,  be  not  afraid  of  Asshur,  though  he  smite 
thee  with  the  rod,  and  lift  up  his  staff  against  thee,  after  the 
manner  of  Egypt.     For  yet  a  very  little  while,  and  the  indigna- 
tion shall  be  accomplished,  and  Mine  anger  shall  be  to  their 
destruction 

Then  follows  the  Burden  of  Babylon,  which 
must  have  been  vividly  in  the  mind  of  Ezekiel 
as  a  Babylonian  captive:19 

Behold,  I  will  stir  up  the  Medes  against  them, 

Who  shall  not  regard  silver, 

And  as  for  gold,  they  shall  not  delight  in  it. 

And  their  bows  shall  dash  the  young  men  in  pieces; 

And  they  shall  have  no  pity  on  the  fruit  of  the  womb; 

Their  eye  shall  not  spare  children. 

12  Is.  XIX  16  Is.  XXIII  «  Is.  X,  5-6,  IS,  24-25, 

» Is.  XXI  » Is.  X-XIV  27 

"  Is.  XXII  17  Is.  XIII  »  Is.  XIII,  17-22 


PROFANATION  AND  PILLAGE          43 

And  Babylon,  the  glory  of  kingdoms, 

The  beauty  of  the  Chaldeans'  pride, 

Shall  be  as  when  God  overthrew  Sodom  and  Gomorrah. 

It  shall  never  be  inhabited. 

Neither  shall  it  be  dwelt  in  from  generation  to  generation; 

Neither  shall  the  Arabian  pitch  tent  there; 

Neither  shall  the  shepherds  make  their  fold  there. 

But  wild-cats  shall  lie  there; 

And  their  houses  shall  be  full  of  ferrets; 

And  ostriches  shall  dwell  there, 

And  satyrs  shall  dance  there. 

And  jackals  shall  howl  in  their  castles, 

And  wild-dogs  in  the  pleasant  palaces; 

And  her  time  is  near  to  come, 

And  her  days  shall  not  be  prolonged. 

But  unless  this  passage  be  understood  as  a  much 
later  interpolation,  it  refers  to  Assyria,  for  it  was 
before  a  combination  of  Medes  and  Babylonians 
that  Nineveh  fell;  and  the  conclusion  of  the 
prophecy  again  points  northward:20 

How  art  thou  fallen  from  heaven, 

0  day-star,  son  of  the  morning! 

How  art  thou  cut  down  to  the  ground, 

That  didst  cast  lots  over  the  nations! 

And  thou  saidst  in  thy  heart: 

'I  will  ascend  into  heaven, 

Above  the  stars  of  God 

Will  I  exalt  my  throne; 

And  I  will  sit  upon  the  mount  of  meeting, 

In  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  north; 

1  will  ascend  above  the  heights  of  the  clouds; 
I  will  be  like  the  Most  High.' 

Yet  thou  shalt  be  brought  down  to  the  nether-world, 
To  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  pit. 

Esar-haddon  restored  and  rebuilt  Babylon 
and  other  Chaldean  cities  which  Sennacherib 
had  destroyed. 

80  Is.  XIV,  12-15 


44  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

Once  again  in  647  B.  C.  was  Judah  subjected 
to  oppression  from  Nineveh  when  Ashurbanipal, 
king  of  Assyria  and  Babylonia,  captured  Manas- 
seh,  king  of  Judah,  obtained  his  penitence,  re- 
newal of  allegiance  and  tribute. 

Nineveh  fell  about  606  B;  C. 

Nebuchadrezzar  reigned  in  Babylonia  604-561 
B.  C.  Judah  was  his  tributary  but  rebelled  and 
entered  into  an  alliance  with  Egypt  three  years 
later.  Jerusalem  was  besieged  in  597  and  sur- 
rendered by  king  Jehoiakim,  8,000  of  the  best 
inhabitants  being  taken  captive  to  Babylonia, 
including  the  prophet  Ezekiel. 

Zedekiah  was  put  on  the  throne  in  Jerusalem 
by  Nebuchadrezzar  in  597  B.  C.  He  rebelled 
in  588;  but  against  the  power  of  Babylon  he 
was  helpless.  When  Jerusalem  fell  in  586  to 
the  army  of  Nebuchadrezzar,  they  slew  the  sons 
of  king  Zedekiah  in  his  presence,  and  then  put 
out  his  eyes  and  carried  him  in  fetters  to  Baby- 
lon. They  destroyed  with  fire  the  houses  of 
the  best  citizens,  the  royal  palace  and  the  sacred 
temple.  They  violated  the  Holy  Place,  and 
carried  away  to  the  treasure-house  at  Babylon 
all  the  sacred  vessels  and  implements  of  brass 
wherewith  the  altars  of  the  Lord  had  been 
served.  And  most  of  the  people  they  mustered 
and  carried  away  as  captives  to  Babylonia.21 

"And  the  pillars  of  brass  that  were  in  the  house  of  the  Lord, 
and  the  bases  and  the  brazen  sea  that  were  in  the  house  of  the 
Lord,  did  the  Chaldeans  break  in  pieces,  and  carried  the  brass  of 
them  to  Babylon.  And  the  pots,  and  the  shovels,  and  the  snuf- 
fers, and  the  pans,  and  all  the  vessels  of  brass  wherewith  they 
ministered,  took  they  away."28 

«  2  Kings  XXV,  1-11     *  2  Kings  XXV,  13-14 


PROFANATION  AND  PILLAGE          45 

Nebuchadrezzar's  own  account  of  his  triumphs 
explains  the  prophecies  of  Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel; 
the  earlier  portions  of  the  "India  House"  in- 
scription are  sufficient: 

Nebuchadrezzar,  King  of  Babylon,  the  exalted  prince,  the 
favorite  of  Marduk,  the  lofty  patesi,  the  beloved  of  Nabu, 
the  arbiter,  the  possessor  of  wisdom,  who  seeks  out  the  path 
of  their  divinity,  who  reverences  their  lordship;.  ..  .At  the 
time  that  Marduk,  the  great  lord,  lifted  up  my  royal  head 
and  intrusted  me  with  the  rule  of  all  people;  and  Nabut  the 
ruler  of  the  host  of  heaven  and  earth,  gave  into  my  hands  a 
righteous  sceptre  for  the  governing  of  the  people; ...  .To 
Marduk  my  lord  I  made  supplication;  I  read  his  prayers,  and 
the  word  of  my  heart  reached  up  to  him.  .  .  .Under  his  exalted 
protection,  far-off  lands,  distant  mountains,  from  the  Upper 
Sea  to  the  Lower  Sea,  steep  trails,  unopened  paths,  where 
motion  was  impeded,  where  there  was  no  foothold,  difficult 
roads,  journeys  without  water,  I  traversed,  and  the  unruly  I 
overthrew;  I  bound  as  captives  my  enemies;  the  land  I  set  in 
order  and  the  people  I  made  to  prosper;  both  bad  and  good 
among  the  people  I  took  under  my  care;  silver,  gold,  costly 
precious  stones,  bronze,  palm-wood,  cedar-wood,  all  kinds  of 
precious  things,  a  rich  abundance,  the  product  of  the  moun- 
tains, the  wealth  of  the  seas,  a  heavy  gift,  a  splendid  present, 
to  my  city  Babylon  I  brought  into  his  presence 23 

In  586  B.  C.  Nebuchadrezzar  besieged  Tyre; 
the  city  held  out  for  thirteen  years  before  its 
surrender — if  indeed,  it  surrendered  at  all;  ac- 
cording to  Tyrian  records  it  merely  submitted 
again  to  tribute. 

These  are  the  events  that  inspired  the  proph- 
ecies of  Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel,  which  differed 
in  method  because  Jeremiah  remained  behind  in 
Jerusalem  and  finally  went  to  Egypt,  while 
Ezekiel  was  carried  captive  to  Babylonia.  Jere- 
miah's doom  songs  cover  Jerusalem  and  all  her 

13  Harper,  op.  cit.  134-136 


46  THE   SHIP   "TYRE" 

neighbors,  reaching  their  natural  climax  with 
the  immediate  oppressor,  Babylon.  Beginning 
with  his  prophecy  against  Jerusalem,24  which 
was  followed  by  mistreatment  and  imprisonment, 
came  those  upon  Egypt  and  the  army  of  Pharaoh- 
neco  at  Carchemish  which  Nebuchadrezzar 
smote,25  followed  by  the  Philistines,26  Moab,27 
Ammon,  Edom,  Damascus,  Kedar  and  Hazor,28 
ending  with  Babylon  :29 

As  Babylon  hath  caused  the  slain  of  Israel  to  fall 

So  at  Babylon  shall  fall  the  slain  of  all  the  land. 

Though  Babylon  should  mount  up  to  heaven, 

And  though  she  should  fortify  the  height  of  her  strength, 

Yet  from  Me  shall  spoilers  come  unto  her,  saith  the  Lord. 

Thus  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts: 

The  broad  walls  of  Babylon  shall  be  utterly  overthrown, 

And  her  high  gates  shall  be  burned  with  fire; 

And  the  peoples  shall  labour  for  vanity, 

And  the  nations  for  the  fire; 

And  they  shall  be  weary. 

And  Jeremiah  wrote  in  one  book  all  the  evil  that  should  come 

upon  Babylon,  even  all  those  words  that  are  written  concerning 

Babylon.     And  Jeremiah  said  to  Seraiah:  'When  thou  comest  to 

Babylon,  then  see  that  thou  read  all  these  words,  and  say: 

O  Lord,  Thou  hast  spoken  concerning  this  place,  to  cut  it  off, 

that  none  shall  dwell  therein,  neither  man  nor  beast,  but  that  it 

shall  be  desolate  for  ever.     And  it  shall  be,  when  thou  hast 

made  an  end  of  reading  this  book,  that  thou  shalt  bind  a  stone  to 

it,  and  cast  it  into  the  midst  of  the  Euphrates;  and  thou  shalt  say: 

Thus  shall  Babylon  sink,  and  shall  not  rise  again  because  of  the 

evil  that  I  will  bring  upon  her;  and  they  shall  be  weary.'30 


24  Jer.  XXII-XXVI       27  Jer.  XLVIII  »  Jer.  LI,  49,  S3,  58, 

<*  Jer.  XLVI  2S  Jer.  XLIX  60-64 

2«  Jer.  XLVII  29  Jer.  L,LI 


CAPTIVITY  47 


VI. 

From  the  residence  of  his  captivity  on  the 
Chebar  in  Babylonia  Ezekiel  was  enabled  better 
than  his  countrymen  who  remained  in  Jerusalem, 
to  view  the  growing  power  and  the  predatory 
purpose  of  Babylon,  and  to  warn  his  country- 
men of  the  futility  of  resistance.  But  although 
he  was  a  Babylonian  captive,  it  is  not  to  be  sup- 
posed that  he  was  a  lover  of  Babylon.  Hatred, 
not  admiration,  was  uppermost  in  his  mind,  but 
care  was  necessary,  if  he  would  fall  afoul  of  no 
law  of  lese  majeste;  for  Nebuchadrezzar  was  a 
ruthless  oppressor,  and  there  was  real  need  for 
giving  cryptic  expression  to  a  prophecy  against 
him.  His  doom  prophecies  cover  Ammon,  Moab 
and  Seir,  Edom,  the  Philistines,1  Egypt,2  Ethiopia 
and  the  lands  of  the  South.3  There  is  a  warning 
to  Egypt  of  the  fate  of  Assyria,4  and  a  lamenta- 
tion for  Egypt.5  There  is  also  a  doom  prophecy 
upon  Tyre,6  which  is  expanded,  unlike  the  other 
prophecies,  into  a  parable  of  the  ship  "Tyre",7 
and  a  lamentation  for  the  "King  of  Tyre",8 
which  are  susceptible  of  interpretation  that 
would  make  them  substitutes  for  Babylon,  the 
great  oppressor,  for  whom  no  fate  is  directly 
prophesied.  In  like  manner  the  author  of  the 
book  of  Daniel  writes  in  detail  about  the  fate  of 
Babylon,  when  he  means  Antioch;  and  the 

1  Ezek.  XXV  4  Ezek.  XXXI  7  Ezek.  XXVII 

2  Ezek.  XXIX,  XXX  6  Ezek.  XXXII  8  Ezek.  XXVIII 

3  Ezek.  XXX  6  Ezek.  XXVI 


48  THE    SHIP    "TYRE" 

author  of  the  Apocalypse,  smarting  under  the 
oppression  of  Rome,  cries  out  in  more  than  one 
passage  against  specific  details  of  Roman  legisla- 
tion and  taxation,  prophesying  the  doom  of 
Rome  under  the  name  of  the  long  dead  Babylon, 
and  in  a  wealth  of  imagery  taken  not  so  much 
from  the  luxury  of  Rome  herself,  as  from  the 
doom  song  of  Ezekiel  on  Babylon  under  the  name 
of  Tyre.  ' 

The  purpose  of  the  prophecies  of  Ezekiel  was 
the  re-establishment  of  the  temple  and  city  at 
Jerusalem  after  the  rival  states  and  the  great 
oppressor  had  met  the  fates  predicted  for  them. 
In  the  utmost  detail  he  gives  the  measurement 
by  reed-lengths  of  the  new  construction  which, 
as  with  Moses  and  David,  he  says  "was  written 
down  by  the  hand  of  the  Lord  upon  him."9 
Service  in  the  new  temple  was  to  be  performed 
by  the  priests  of  the  sons  of  Zadok,10  of  whom 
Ezekiel  was  one,  and  all  the  offerings,  the  tithes 
and  the  reservation  of  the  devoted  substances 
previously  ordered  for  tabernacle  and  temple, 
were  to  be  renewed.11  Ezekiel  did  not  live  to  see 
the  reconstruction  undertaken,  and  Ezra  and 
Nehemiah,  under  whom  the  work  was  done,  do 
not  give  sufficient  detail  for  us  to  determine  how 
far  they  carried  out  his  specifications.  For 
the  reconstruction  Ezekiel  gives  minute  meas- 
urements, but  says  nothing  concerning  ma- 

•  Ezek.  XI,  1-4  10  Ezek.  XL,  46 

»  Ezek.  XLII-XLVI:  It  is,  of  course,  a  matter  of  debate  whether 
Ezekiel's  system  was  innovation  or  restoration;  concerning 
which  some  considerations  are  offered  in  the  concluding  section 
of  this  book. 


A  King  putting  out  the   Eyes  of  a  Captive 

Botta,  Le  Monument  de  Ninivt 

(Sec  p.  44) 

Reproduced  from  Maspero,  The  Passing  of  the  Empires. 
D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  publishers 


&     Jf 

J5    I 


d 


II 


2    .? 


•«  o 

-  I. 

60  us 

I  i 

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£  2 

3  *** 

t  •« 


CAPTIVITY  49 


terials.12  We  may  assume  that  he  had  in  mind, 
so  far  as  possible,  the  use  of  those  already 
sanctified;  and  it  is  in  his  doom  songs,  especially 
those  upon  Jerusalem,  Samaria  and  Tyre,  that 
the  details  are  found.13 

Ezekiel's  visions  began,  he  tells  us,  in  July 
593  B.  C.14  and  lasted  for  twenty-two  years. 
His  prophetic  method  was  that  of  the  artist, 
student  and  popular  orator,  and  without  full 
knowledge  of  local  contemporary  conditions  con- 
stantly alluded  to  in  his  writings,  it  is  sometimes 
difficult  to  grasp  his  meaning.  His  speaking 
must  have  been  full  of  dramatic  action,  highly 
picturesque  in  style,  designed  to  attract  the 
passersby  at  the  street  corners.  He  said  of  his 
own  work  that  he  doubted  the  efficacy  of  emblem- 
atic prophecy:16 

"thou  art  unto  them  as  a  love  song  of  one  that  hath  a  pleasant 
voice,  and  can  play  well  on  an  instrument;  so  they  hear  thy 
words,  but  they  do  them  not." 

12  Whether  these  minute  numerical  details  may  have,  by  Gematria, 
any  bearing  upon  the  subject  now  under  consideration,  the  present 
writer  can  only  leave  to  some  student  of  the  Kabbalah  to  deter- 
mine.    Cf.  Abelson,  Jewish  Mysticism. 

13  That  the  sanctity  of  the  temple  and  its  ritual  was  considered 
essential  to  the  welfare  of  the  people  is  shown  in  the  following 
passages  from  the  Talmud: 

There  are  three  things  on  which  the  world  stands:  The  law, 
the  temple  service,  and  benevolence — Avoth,  1. 

Seven  things  were  formed  before  the  creation  of  the  world: 
The  Law,  Repentance,  Paradise,  Gehenna,  the  Throne  of  Glory, 
the  Temple,  and  the  name  of  the  Messiah — P'sachim,  54,  1. 

So  long  as  there  is  a  diadem  on  the  head  of  the  priest,  there  is 
a  crown  on  the  head  of  every  man.  Remove  the  diadem  from  the 
head  of  the  high  priest  and  you  take  away  the  crown  from  the  head 
of  all  the  people  (Comment,  on  Ezek.  XXI,  26) — Gittin  7,  1. 

14  Ezek.  I,  1-3  16  Ezek.  XXXIII,  32 


50  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

But  from  such  methods  resulted  the  best 
accounts  in  the  Hebrew  scriptures  of  the  eco- 
nomic and  commercial  conditions,  and  of  the 
peoples  with  whom  Israel  was  in  contact.  It 
was  as  if  the  speaker  held  up  to  his  audience  a 
painting  and  pointed  out  before  their  eyes  every 
detail  of  interest;  or  as  if,  in  that  passage  about 
the  "sword  of  the  Lord"  he  acted  out  on  the 
street  corner  the  fire  and  fury  of  the  swords- 
man.16 Equally  striking  was  his  mimic  siege 
of  Jerusalem,17  followed  by  his  description  of 
Jerusalem  as  a  rusty  caldron,  the  sides  or  walls 
whereof  the  Babylonian  forces  would  readily 
breach.18  Were  such  passages  accompanied  by 
the  usual  stage  directions  they  might  still  be 
suited  to  dramatic  action.  Learned  in  the  Law 
he  was  also,  and  in  the  history  of  his  people,  so 
deeply  that  his  work  is  sometimes  fragrant  of  the 
midnight  oil;  but  his  object  in  the  use  of  details 
was  to  instruct  his  audience  in  some  specific  way, 
and  not  to  produce  an  encyclopedia.19  And  in 
studying  his  details  it  is  necessary  constantly  to 
bear  in  mind  the  reasons  for  their  appearance. 

«  Ezek.  XXI,  13-16      17  Ezek.  IV,  V  18  Ezek.  XXIV,  1-14 

19  Benjamin  of  Tudela  describes  the  Synagogue  of  Ezekiel,  by  the 
Euphrates:  It  had  sixty  turrets;  in  the  court  was  the  ark,  and  at 
the  back  the  sepulchre  of  Ezekiel.  The  Chebar  was  at  one  side 
and  the  Euphrates  at  the  other.  It  was  held  sacred  by  Israel  as  a 
lesser  sanctuary.  On  the  Day  of  Atonement  they  brought  forth, 
and  read  from,  a  scroll  of  the  Law  written  on  parchment  by 
Ezekiel.  A  lamp  burned  day  and  night  over  the  sepulchre,  the 
light  having  been  kept  burning  from  the  day  that  he  lighted  it 
himself.  There  was  a  library  filled  with  books,  some  from  the  time 
of  the  first  temple  and  some  from  the  time  of  the  second  temple, 
and  offerings  were  received  from  Jews  in  distant  lands,  (ed.  Adler, 
p.  44) 


CAPTIVITY  51 


The  prophecies  of  Ezekiel  most  closely  related 
to  the  present  inquiry  are  that  on  Jerusalem  as 
the  foundling  and  faithless  bride,20  that  on 
Samaria  and  Jerusalem  the  wanton  sisters,21 
and  that  on  the  ship  "Tyre"  as  the  symbol  of 
world  commerce,  material  wealth,  and  the  pride 
of  empire.22 

As  the  chosen  of  the  Lord,  Jerusalem  was 
pictured  as  owing  her  comforts  and  luxuries  to 
the  instruments  of  the  Lord,  whether  priest  or 
king,  and  as  being  bound  thereby  to  the  Lord 
by  their  use  and  enjoyment.  So  the  daughters 
of  Israel  had  been  reminded  that  Saul  clothed 
them  with  garments  of  scarlet  and  other  delights, 
and  put  ornaments  of  gold  upon  their  apparel.23 

In  Ezekiel's  parable  of  the  foundling,  this 
idea  is  much  more  fully  developed;  and  it  is  of 
interest  to  find  that  the  luxuries  wherewith  this 
outcast  daughter  of  the  Amorite  and  Hittite24 
(pace  the  compiler  of  the  text  of  the  Law)  was 
clothed  as  the  bride  of  the  Lord,  were,  item  by 
item,  substances  that  went  into  the  construction, 
adornment,  equipment  and  service  of  the  taber- 
nacle of  Moses : 

I  anointed  thee  with  oil.  I  clothed  thee  also  with  richly  woven 
work,  and  shod  thee  with  sealskin,  and  I  wound  fine  linen  about 
thy  head,  and  covered  thee  with  silk.26 

The  oil  was  for  the  lamp,  the  offerings  and  the 
anointing  oil ;  the  richly  woven  work  was  for  the 
priest's  robes;  the  sealskins  for  the  covering 
above  the  tent;  the  silk  represented  the  goats' 

»  Ezek.  XVI  22  Ezek.  XXVII  2<  Ezek.  XVI,  3 

81  Ezek.  XXIII  23  2  Sam.  I,  24  *>  Ezek.  XVI,  9-10 


52  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

hair  of  the  tent;  and  the  fine  linen  was  for  the 
curtains  of  the  tabernacle.26 

"Silk"  is  the  rabbinical  interpretation  of  a 
Hebrew  word  meaning  "drawn,"  whereby  the 
original  allusion  to  the  goats'  hair  covering 
of  the  tabernacle  is  lost.  The  LXX  has  "veil 
of  hair",  agreeing  with  the  Exodus  specifica- 
tions.27 In  the  echo  of  this  passage  in  the 
Apocalypse  it  appears  as  "seric"  cloth,  which 
although  it  came  to  mean  silk,  originally  in- 
cluded also  cotton  muslin,  the  classical  writers 
being  confused  by  the  tree  origin  of  both  fabrics.28 


SEALSKINS:  JTniy  D^BTin  Tahash,  from  which  the  rabbis  read 
badger,  dolphin  or  seal,  as  if  from  root  r\WT\  to  rest;  but  LXX 
baKlvQtva;  Vulg.  janthinas,  DV  violet  skins;  the  outermost  of 
the  four  coverings  of  the  tabernacle,  Ex.  XXV,  5;  Num.  IV,  6. 
The  purpose  was  to  shed  the  rain  and  ward  off  the  lightning; 
whether  a  natural  hide  or  a  specially-prepared  leather,  depends 
upon  the  religious  affiliations  of  the  interpreter!  Seals  were 
plentiful  in  the  Red  Sea;  Agatharchides  (87)  mentions  the  "Island 
of  Seals"  off  the  headland  separating  the  Gulfs  of  Suez  and  Akaba. 
QUKUV  vijffos  6vofj.afo/j,kvif).  Sails  of  ships,  says  Plutarch  (Quaest. 
conviv.  IV,  2,  1)  were  bound  with  hide;  and  the  skins  of  the  hyena 
and  the  seal  were  especially  in  request  for  this,  because  of  an 
ancient  belief  that  they  would  keep  off  the  lightning. 

This  was  not  the  true  seal,  but  rather  the  Red  Sea  dugong, 
Halicore  tabernaculi. 

»  Ex.  XXV,  4. 

27  rptxaTTT^,  Vulg.  bysso.  India  is  said  to  have  exported  silk  to 
the  Persian  empire,  where  it  exchanged  for  its  weight  in  gold 
(Mookerji,  op.  cit.  82-83). 

88  Rev.  XVHI,  12:  Both  were  known  as  tree  wool.  Cf.  Strabo 
XV,  i,  20.  "Nearchus  says  that  their  fine  cloths  were  made  of 
this  wool,  and  that  the  Macedonians  used  it  for  mattresses  and 
the  stuffing  of  saddles.  The  Serica  also  are  of  a  similar  kind, 
and  are  made  of  dry  byssus,  which  is  obtained  from  some  sort  of 


CAPTIVITY  53 


The  apparent  inconsistency  is  due  solely  to  this 
late  misinterpretation. 

The  description  then  turns  to  the  "devoted 
substances",  whereof  a  share  was  to  be  reserved 
for  the  priests  and  Levites. 

I  decked  thee  also  with  ornaments,  and  I  put  bracelets  upon  thy 
hands,  and  a  chain  on  thy  neck.  And  I  put  a  ring  upon  thy  nose, 
and  earrings  in  thine  ears,  and  a  beautiful  crown  upon  thy  head.2* 

Once  more  we  return  to  the  tabernacle: 

Thus  wast  thou  decked  with  gold  and  silver;  and  thy  raiment 
was  of  fine  linen,  and  silk,  and  richly  woven  work.30 

Here  again  silk  is  a  mistaken  rendering,  the 
LXX  having  "covering  cloth  of  linen,  veil  of 
goats'  hair,  and  chequered  work",  agreeing  with 
the  Exodus  specifications.31  The  substitution 
of  silk  for  mohair  could  have  .occurred  at  any 
time  after  the  Seleucid  empire  had  made  possible 
the  organization  of  the  overland  trade  route. 
Its  presence  in  the  temple  may  be  doubted  be- 
fore a  late  post-exilic  date. 

bark  of  plants."  Also  Herodotus  II,  86;  Pliny  XIV,  4;  XIX,  2; 
XII,  21.  Ammianus  Marcellinus  XXIII,  vi,  67.  Vergil,  Georgics 
II,  121 :  Velleraque  ut  foliis  depectant  tenuia  Seres. 

»Ezek.  XVI,  11-12:  cf.  Num.  XXXI.  "God  will  be  a  crown 
of  glory  upon  the  head  of  each  saint":  Isa,  XXVIII,  5  (Megillah, 
15b).  Cf.  2  Tim.  IV,  8. 

»Ezek.    XVI,    13 

81 7rept/36Xoua  /S&traii/a,  TpLxarTA.  icai  roixiXa  Vulg.  bysso  et  polymito 
et  multicoloribus. 

SILK:  so  AV,  RV,  JR,  following  rabbinical  interpretation  of  ifc^Q 
Ezek.  XVI,  10.  But  the  reference  is  to  the  goats'  hair  covering 
of  the  tabernacle,  likened  to  a  woman's  garment.  Cf.  Ex.  XXVI, 
1-14:  a  framework  supporting  linen  hangings,  the  tabernacle 
proper,  J3B*0 ,  or  dwelling;  over  this  were  drawn  the  outer  cur- 
tains, of  goats'  hair, 5nK,  or  tent;  over  this,  the  tent-covering  of 
rams'  skins,  with  an  upper  covering  of  sealskins.  The  inner  hang- 


54 THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

Next  come  the  tabernacle  offerings: 

Thou  didst  eat  fine  flour,  and  honey,  and  oil.82 


ings  were  &W  ,  the  outer  curtains  ^DQ.  (shesh,  masakh). 
Ezekiel,  in  MT,  alters  these  words  to  a  rhyming  sequence  of 
and  ijj>£  ,  (sheshi,  meshi),  and  the  rabbis,  seeing  the  root 
"to  draw"  (which  could  also  refer  to  the  curtains  drawn  over  the 
hangings),  and  thinking  of  a  living,  rather  than  a  symbolic, 
wanton,  imagined  a  "fine-drawn"  fabric;  drawn-work,  as  it  were. 
Transparent  gauze  was  much  affected  by  the  haut-monde,  and  the 
demi-monde  likewise,  after  the  silk-spinners  of  Cos  learned  the 
art;  but  this  was  well  into  the  Seleucid  period.  Cf.  Pliny,  H.  N. 
xi,  26.  These  rabbis  must  have  been  of  the  sort  described  in 
Dan.  XIII,  concerning  whom  cf.  Vulg.  or  DV. 

The  LXX  holds  to  the  original  reading,  having  fiixjaiva.  Kal 
rpLxaTTTb,  but  the  Vulg.  partly  loses  the  allusion  with  its 
bysso  et  polymito,  which  the  DV  renders  "fine  linen  and  embroid- 
ered work."  The  ancient  Armenian  also  uses  a  word  meaning 
"embroidery". 

The  covering  of  the  tabernacle  was  symbolized  by  Isaiah  also  as 
a  woman's  garment;  cf.  XXII,  8,  "the  covering  of  Judah  was  laid 
bare",  meaning  that  the  city  was  to  be  forcibly  entered;  so  Ezekiel, 
when  he  speaks  of  the  foundling  removing  her  garments  (made  of 
the  veils  and  curtains  of  the  tabernacle)  to  cover  her  "images  of 
men",  means  that  the  sanctuary  was  opened  to  the  worship  of 
other  gods.  So  in  Cant.  V,  7,  the  bride  who  went  forth  to  seek  her 
husband  was  taken  by  the  watchmen  to  be  a  wanton,  and  they 
"took  away  her  mantle." 

The  parallel  passage  in  the  Apocalypse  (Rev.  XVIII,  12) 
has  fjvcrvivov  KO.I  (ripiKov,  "linen  and  silk",  following  the  rabbinical 
interpretation,  with  which  it  was  nearly  contemporary. 

The  assonant  iw  and  i{p£  may  be  a  variant  in  MT, 
later  than  the  LXX;  but  the  assonance  may  also  be  a  trick  of 
style,  as  cf.  rnp  and  njp  ,  Ezek.  XXVII,  19,  where  in  Ex. 
XXX,  23  MT  has  D^ITIJP  *nd  DEO'fEJp. 

The  same  two  fabrics  appear  in  the  ship's  awnings,  linen  and 
hair,  irapappbuaTa  Xewcd  Kal  Tpl\iva,  or  fibaaiva.  KO! 

(Corp.  Inscr.  Attic,  ii,  809,  811) 

*  Ezek.  XVI,  13 


CAPTIVITY  55 


The  showbread,  the  unleavened  cakes,  and  the 
meal  offering  are  suggested.33  But  honey  was  a 
substance  forbidden  as  an  offering;  the  text  may 
be  earlier  than  the  present  text  of  Leviticus, 
or  it  may  indicate  laxity  in  observance: 

for  ye  shall  make  no  leaven,  nor  any  honey,  smoke  as  an  offer- 
ing made  by  fire  unto  the  Lord.34 

However,  flour,  honey  and  oil  are  all  of  the 
firstfruits  of  which  the  tithes  were  to  be  paid.35 

But,  the  prophet  continues,  the  faithless 
foundling  trusted  in  her  own  beauty  and  be- 
stowed her  garments  and  ornaments  upon 
others;  wherein  the  mention  of  the  materials  of 
the  tabernacle  signifies  Israel's  service  of  other 
gods: 

Thou  didst  also  take  thy  fair  jewels  of  My  gold  and  of  My 
silver,  which  I  had  given  thee,  and  madest  for  thee  images  of 
men.  .  .  .and  thou  didst  take  thy  richly  woven  garments  and 
cover  them,  and  didst  set  Mine  oil  and  Mine  incense  before 
them.  My  bread  also  which  I  gave  thee,  fine  flour,  and  oil, 
and  honey,  wherewith  I  fed  thee,  thou  didst  even  set  it  before 
them  for  a  sweet  savor.  .  .  ,38 

The  foundling's  favorites  are  named  as  the 
Egyptians,  the  Assyrians,  and  the  "land  of 
traffic,  even  Chaldea";  this  expression,  "land  of 
traffic",  is  one  that  Ezekiel  applies  alike  to  Tyre 
and  Babylon,  but  it  seems  to  indicate  Babylon 

*»Ex.  XXV,  XXIX,  XXX       "Lev.  II,  11 

86  Num.    XVIII,    Deut.    XIV: — According  to   the   Talmud,    seven 

liquids   are   comprehended  under   the  generic  term,  drink   (Lev. 

XI,  34):   dew,  water,  wine,  oil,  blood,  milk,  and  honey.     (Mach- 

shirin,  6,  6). 
*  Ezek.  XVI,  17-19 


56  THE    SHIP    "TYRE" 

all  the  time.37  Notwithstanding  the  foundling's 
misbehavior,  she  is  promised  ultimate  forgive- 
ness with  the  establishment  of  a  covenant 
"for  the  age."38 

In  the  parable  of  the  wanton  sisters,  the 
details  are  no  longer  those  of  the  sacred  ritual, 
but  of  the  military  equipment  of  kings.  Their 
favorites  are : 

the  Assyrians,  governors  and  rulers,  warriors,  clothed  most 
gorgeously,  horsemen  riding  upon  horses,  all  of  them  handsome 
young  men.... The  Chaldeans  girded  with  girdles  upon  their 
loins,  pendant  turbans  upon  their  heads,  all  of  them  captains 
to  look  upon,.  .  .the  sons  of  Babylon,  even  Chaldea.39 

And  it  was  prophesied  that  the  sisters  would 
find  themselves  set  upon  in  hostile  array  by: 

The  Babylonians  and  all  the  Chaldeans,  Pekod  and  Shoa  and 
Koa,  and  all  the  Assyrians  with  them,  handsome  young  men, 
governors  and  rulers  all  of  them,  captains  and  councillors,  all  of 
them  riding  upon  horses.  And  they  shall  come  against  thee 
with  hosts,  chariots,  and  wheels,  and  with  an  assembly  of 
peoples;  they  shall  set  themselves  in  array  against  thee  with 
buckler  and  shield  and  helmet  round  about;.  .  .They  shall  also 
strip  thee  of  thy  clothes,  and  take  away  thy  fair  jewels.  .40 

That  is  to  say,  that  all  the  military  equipment 
and  power  in  which  Solomon  and  his  successors 

17  Ezek.  XVII,  3-4,  12:  the  great  eagle  that  came  unto  Lebanon 
and  took  the  top  of  the  cedar,  "and  carried  it  to  a  land  of 
traffic",  and  the  prophet  explains  the  allegory:  "the  king  of  Baby- 
lon came  to  Jerusalem,  and  took  the  king  thereof,  and  the  princes 
thereof,  and  brought  them  to  him  to  Babylon." 

»  Ezek.  XVI,  60-63 

89  Ezek.  XXIII,  5-16:  The  names  of  the  sisters  sufficiently  ex- 
plain the  symbolism:  Jerusalem  is  nS'frlK  "mv  tabernacle  is 
in  her",  and  Samaria  is  n^!"lK  "she  has  her  own  tabernacle" 
(Oholibah,  Oholah).  The  foundling  also  is  clothed  in  stuffs  of 
the  tabernacle. 

«  Ezek.  XXIII,  22-26:  cf.  1  Kings  X 


CAPTiriTY  57 

had  prided  themselves  would  be  overwhelmed 
by  the  greater  power  of  Chaldea,  and  the  hang- 
ings and  veils  of  the  temple,  the  robes  of  the 
priests,  and  the  precious  vessels  for  the  service, 
would  be  carried  off  to  Babylon. 

Having  listed  in  the  dooms  of  Samaria  and 
Jerusalem,  as  clothing  and  equipment,  the 
items  of  the  service  of  the  temple  and  of  the 
spoil  of  priests  and  kings,  the  prophet  proceeds 
to  the  doom  of  Tyre,41  which  Nebuchadrezzar 
was  preparing  to  conquer.  He  then  takes  up 
his  parable  of  the  good  ship  "Tyre",42  which 
forms  one  of  our  most  vivid  pictures  of  ancient 
commerce,  and  ranks  in  that  respect  with  the 
Punt  inscriptions  and  the  Tel-el-Amarna  letters. 

Whatever  the  earlier  history  of  the  Phoeni- 
cians, whether  or  not  they  came  originally  from 
the  Persian  Gulf,  they  had  been  located  for  cen- 
turies on  the  Mediterranean  coast  of  Syria,  and 
had  thoroughly  explored  the  Mediterranean  and 
Black  Seas  and  the  coasts  of  the  Atlantic;  south- 
ward, perhaps,  as  far  as  Sierra  Leone,  and  north- 
ward as  far  as  Britain.43  After  the  overthrow 
of  the  older  Babylonia  by  Assyria,  its  civiliza- 
tion as  well  as  its  public  improvements  decayed, 
and  the  lower  courses  of  the  Euphrates  and 
Tigris  reverted  to  swampy  marsh-lands  inhabited 
by  a  poverty-stricken  and  primitive  people; 
while  the  sea-trade  of  the  Persian  Gulf  decayed 
likewise.  The  Assyrians  employed  the  services 
of  the  Phoenicians  in  their  campaign  against 

41  Ezek.  XXVI  «  Ezek.  XXVII 

48  The  Carthaginians  certainly  reached  Sierra  Leone,  but  a  century 
later:    cf.  Periplus  of  Hanno. 


58  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

Elam;  and  the  location  of  their  shipbuilding 
enterprises  was  too  obviously  a  point  of  vantage 
to  be  overlooked.  How  great  was  the  assistance 
they  rendered  in  enabling  the  new  Babylonia  to 
gain  its  independence  of  Nineveh,  and  finally, 
in  alliance  with  the  Medes,  utterly  to  overthrow 
Assyria,  we  need  not  at  present  attempt  to  de- 
termine; but  their  influence  was  doubtless  great, 
and  great  likewise  within  the  new  Babylonian 
kingdom,  in  which  they  probably  took  a  leading 
part  as  sea-traders  both  east  and  west,  as  land 
carriers  and  as  international  bankers.44  The 
contemptuous  remark  of  Isaiah  may  be  recalled : 

Behold,  the  land  of  the  Chaldeans — this  is  the  people  that  was 
not,  when  Asshur  founded  it  for  shipmen.  . 45 

Such  dependence  of  a  powerful  state  upon  a  mere 
city  was  intolerable  to  the  Babylonians,  and  is 
sufficient  explanation  of  their  long  and  unre- 
mitting siege  of  Tyre.  Whether  or  not  they  took 
the  city,  they  inflicted  injuries  upon  its  com- 
merce from  which  it  never  fully  recovered.  In 
this  respect  Tyre  held  a  position  somewhat  ana- 
logous to  that  of  the  Venetian  republic  toward 
the  Holy  Roman  Empire.  Tyre  commercially 
represented  Babylon,  but  Babylon  found  herself 
without  a  satisfactory  share  of  the  profits,  which 
she  was  resolved  to  possess  for  herself  alone. 
This  will  explain  the  readiness  with  which 
Ezekiel  used  the  symbol  of  the  good  ship  "Tyre" 
as  representing  the  whole  commercial  structure 

44  But  it  was  at  best  an  indolent  commercial  system,  as  compared 
with  modern  standards:  cf.  Gardner,  History  of  Ancient 
Coinage,  IV. 

16  is.  xxm,  13  OR)  Dnnp  im  TPBN?  IPK  Q'pim 


CAPTIVITY  59 


of  the  Babylonians,  and  how,  in  prophesying 
from  his  residence  upon  the  Chebar  waterway  the 
obviously  impending  doom  of  the  city  of  Tyre, 
he  was  able  at  the  same  time  to  prophesy  the 
approaching  doom  of  Babylon  herself.  The 
commerce  of  the  real  Tyre  is  well  known  from 
other  sources,  and  it  included  many  things  not 
found  in  Ezekiel's  allegory;  and  if  we  tabulate 
the  trade  therein,  it  is  clearly  no  trade  of  a 
busy  commercial  and  industrial  metropolis. 
There  are  imports,  but  no  exports;  and  Tyre 
based  her  commercial  strength  upon  her  manu- 
factures. The  imports  are  such  as  Tyre  dealt 
in,  but  there  were  many  more;  and  the  sources 
given  are  correct  so  far  as  they  go,  but  Tyre 
dealt  with  many  other  places  and  peoples  than 
those  mentioned  by  Ezekiel.  The  ship  "Tyre" 
is  a  symbol  of  Chaldea;  her  cargo  is  a  symbol 
of  the  institutions  of  the  priesthood  and  prince- 
dom of  Judah  which  Babylon  had  profaned;  and 
her  doom  is  the  doom  of  Babylon  herself.46 

For  the  ship  "Tyre",  in  building,  manning, 
and  lading,  was  surely  one  of  the  strangest 
vessels  that  ever  ploughed  the  seas.  The  planks 
of  the  tabernacle,  but  cut  from  wood  of  the 
temple,  made  its  hull;  the  timber  of  the  temple, 
its  mast;  the  pillars  of  the  tabernacle,  but  of 
wood  of  the  tree  under  which  Joshua  set  up  his 
stone,  its  oars;  the  veil,  its  sail;  the  screen,  its 
awning;  its  standard,  perhaps  that  of  the  tribe 

46  In  the  book  of  Daniel,  Nebuchadrezzar  and  Babylon  do  duty  for 
Antiochus  Epiphanes  and  Antioch.  Jeremiah  (XXV,  26)  uses 
Sheshach,  which,  in  cipher,  is  Babylon.  That  the  royal  spies 
were  a  real  menace,  cf.  Eccl.  X,  20. 


60  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

of  Levi;  the  royal  throne,  its  helmsman's  seat. 
Although  officered  and  manned  by  the  best 
men  of  the  chief  cities  of  Phoenicia,  and 
defended  by  the  sturdiest  of  the  fighters  of 
Arabia,  its  cargo  was  made  up  of  the  metals  of 
tabernacle,  temple,  and  royal  guard;  the  sacred 
vessels;  the  captive  maidens  and  the  beasts  of 
burden  set  aside  for  the  priests;  the  cavalry  and 
commissary  equipment  of  Solomon;  the  ivory  of 
the  throne;  the  jewels  of  the  high  priest's  breast- 
plate and  of  his  shoulder-buckles;  the  show- 
bread  and  anointing  oil;  the  drink-offering;  the 
tent-covering  of  the  tabernacle;  the  king's 
weapons  and  armor;  the  sacred  incense;  the 
burnt-offering,  the  meal-offering,  and  the  sin- 
offering;  the  gold  of  the  breastplate  and  the 
mitre-plate;  and  the  robes  of  the  high  priest, 
packed  in  a  chest  that  recalled  the  ark  of  the 
covenant,  which  the  Babylonians  had  destroyed, 
and  the  sacred  treasure,  which  they  were  holding 
in  their  treasure-house !  A  strange  medley,  if  read 
as  a  real  ship's  manifest;  but  if  read  as  its  writer 
intended,  a  memorable  record  of  the  desire  of  a 
people  for  retribution.47 

The  Lord  is  of  them  that  uphold  my  soul, 
He  shall  requite  the  evil  unto  mine  enemies.48 


47  There  is  some  confusion  in  the  text.  The  LXX  is  more 
consistent  than  the  Hebrew.  The  present  version  (in  which 
due  regard  is  had  to  the  recent  commentaries'  of  Bertholet, 
Kraetzschmar  and  Cheminant)  is  offered  in  the  hope  of  in- 
terpreting the  doubtful  passages. 

«  Ps.  LIV,  4-5. 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP 61_ 

VII 
THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

EZEKIEL    XXVII 

The  word  of  the  Lord  came  again  unto  me, 
saying:  And  thou,  son  of  man,  take  up  a 
lamentation  for  Tyre;  and  say  unto  Tyre,  that 
dwelleth  at  the  entry  of  the  sea,  that  is  the  place 
of  traffic  for  the  peoples  from  many  isles :  Thus 
saith  the  Lord  God: 

Thou,  O  Tyre,  hast  said:  A  ship  am  I, 

Of  perfect  beauty. 
My  sides  are  raised  up  in  the  heart  of  the  seas, 

The  princes  of  the  sea  were  my  builders. 
Of  cypress-trees  from  Senir  have  they  fashioned 

All  thy  planks ; 
They  have  taken  a  cedar  from  Lebanon 

To  make  a  mast  forthee. 
Of  the  highest  of  the  oaks  of  Bashan 

Have  they  made  thine  oars; 
Thy  seat  have  they  made  of  ivory,  inlaid  in 
thyine  wood 

From  the  groves  of  the  isle  of  Kittim. 
Of  fine  linen  with  richly  woven  work  from  Egypt 

Was  thy  sail; 
Scarlet  was  thy  standard, 

To  be  to  thee  for  an  ensign ; 


62  THE    SHIP   "TYRE" 

Blue  and  purple  from  the  isles  of  Elishah 

Was  thine  awning. 
The  rulers  of  Sidon  and  Arvad 

Were  thy  rowers; 
The  wise  men  of  Sumur  served  thee, 

They  were  thy  pilots; 
The  elders  of  Gebal  were  in  thee, 

To  be  thy  calkers; 
The  men  of  Mehalleb  served  thee, 

They  exchanged  thy  merchandise. 
The  Persians,  and  they  of  Lud  and  Put 

Were  thy  men  of  war; 

They  hanged  the  shield  and  helmet  round  about 
thee, 

They  set  forth  thy  comeliness. 
The  men  of  Arvad  and  Helech 

Were  upon  thy  deck  round  about; 
The  Gammadim  were  in  thy  turrets; 

They  perfected  thy  beauty. 

Tarshish  was  thy  merchant  by  reason  of  the 
multitude  of  all  thy  riches ;  with  silver,  iron,  tin, 
and  lead,  they  traded  for  thy  wares.  Javan, 
Tubal,  and  Meshech,  they  were  thy  traffickers; 
they  traded  the  persons  of  men  and  vessels  of 
brass  for  thy  merchandise.  They  of  the  house  of 
Togarmah  traded  for  thy  wares,  with  draft-horses 
and  saddle-horses  and  mules.  The  men  of  Dedan 
were  thy  traffickers;  from  many  isles  they 
brought  thee  for  thy  merchandise  horns  of  ivory, 


ALLEGORY  OF   THE  SHIP  63 

and  ebony.  Edom  was  thy  merchant  by  reason 
of  the  multitude  of  thy  wealth ;  with 

Nophek,  tars his h   and   bareketh, 
Shokam,   ramoth    and  chodecod, 

they  traded  for  thy  wares.  Judah,  and  the 
land  of  Israel,  they  were  thy  traffickers;  they 
traded  for  thy  merchandise  wheat  of  Minnith, 
cakes,  and  honey,  and  oil,  and  balm.  Damascus 
was  thy  merchant  for  the  multitude  of  thy 
wealth;  they  traded  for  thy  wares  the  wine 
of  Helbon,  and  sheepskins  of  Sahar.  Vedan 
and  Jevan  from  Uzal  brought  thee  for  thy 
merchandise  massive  iron,  cassia,  and  calamus. 
Dedan  was  thy  trafficker;  the  best  beasts  of 
burden  he  brought  thee  for  thy  wares.  Arabia, 
and  all  the  princes  of  Kedar,  brought  thee  lambs, 
and  rams,  and  goats,  for  thy  merchandise. 
Sheba  and  Raamah,  they  were  thy  traffickers; 
they  traded  for  thy  wares  with  chief  of  all 
spices,  and  with  all  precious  stones,  and  gold. 
Haran  and  Canneh,  Eden  and  Chilmad,  they 
were  thy  traffickers;  they  traded  for  thy  mer- 
chandise, with  gorgeous  fabrics,  with  mantles  of 
blue  and  richly  woven  work,  and  with  chests  of 
cypress,  bound  with  cords  and  cedar-lined. 

The  ships  of  Tarshish  brought  thee  riches 

For  thy  merchandise. 
So  wast  thou  replenished,  and  made  very  heavy 

In  the  heart  of  the  seas. 
Thy  rowers  have  brought  thee 

Into  great  waters; 


$4  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

The  east  wind  hath  broken  thee 

In  the  heart  of  the  seas. 
Thy  riches  and  thy  wares  and  thy  merchandise, 

Thy  mariners,  and  thy  pilots, 
Thy  calkers,  and  the  exchangers  of  thy  mer- 
chandise, 

And  all  thy  men  of  war, 
That  are  in  thee,  with  all  thy  company 

Which  is  in  the  midst  of  thee, 
Shall  fall  into  the  heart  of  the  seas 

In  the  day  of  thy  ruin. 
At  the  sound  of  the  cry  of  thy  pilots 

The  waves  shall  shake. 
And  there  shall  come  down  from  their  ships 

All  that  handle  the  oar, 
The  mariners,  and  all  the  pilots  of  the  sea, 

They  shall  stand  upon  the  land, 
And  shall  cause  tl\eir  voice  to  be  heard  over  thee 

And  shall  cry  bitterly. 
They  shall  cast  up  dust  upon  their  heads, 

And  shall  roll  themselves  in  the  ashes; 
And  they  shall  make  themselves  utterly  bald  for 
thee, 

And  gird  them  with  sackcloth. 

And  they  shall  weep  for  thee  in  bitterness  of  soul 

With  bitter  lamentation. 

And  in  their  wailing  they  shall  take  up  a  lamenta- 
tion for  thee, 

And  lament  over  thee: 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP <55 

Who  was  there  like  Tyre,  fortified 

In  the  midst  of  the  sea  ? 
When  thy  wares  came  forth  out  of  the  seas, 

Thou  didst  fill  many  peoples; 
With  the  multitude  of  thy  riches  and  of  thy 
merchandise 

Didst  thou  enrich  the  kings  of  the 

earth. 
Now  that  thou  art  broken  by  the  seas 

In  the  depths  of  the  waters, 
And  thy  merchandise  and  all  thy  company 

Are  fallen  in  the  midst  of  thee, 
All  the  inhabitants  of  the  isles 

Are  appalled  at  thee, 
And  their  kings  are  horribly  afraid, 

They   are   troubled   in   their   coun- 
tenance; 

The  merchants  among  the  peoples  clap  their 
hands, 

And  hiss  at  thee; 
Thou  art  come  to  a  terrible  end, 

And  shalt  be  no  more  in  the  age. 


66 THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

THE  "PRINCE  OF  TYRE" 

EZEKIEL  XXVIII 

And  the  word  of  the  Lord  came  unto  me,  say- 
ing: Son  of  man,  say  unto  the  prince  of  Tyre: 
Thus  saith  the  Lord  God: 

Because  thy  heart  is  lifted  up, 

And  thou  hast  said: 
I  am  a  god,  I  sit  in  the  seat  of  God, 

In  the  heart  of  the  seas; 
Though  thou  didst  set  thy  heart  as  the  heart  of 

God, 

Yet  thou  art  man,  and  not  God. 

There  is  no  secret  that  they  can  hide  from  thee, 

Behold,  thou  art  wiser  than  Daniel! 
By  thy  wisdom  and  by  thy  discernment 

Thou  hast  gotten  thee  riches, 
And  hast  gotten  gold  and  silver 

Into  thy  treasures; 
In  thy  great  wisdom  by  thy  traffic 

Hast  thou  increased  thy  riches, 
And  thy  heart  is  lifted  up  because  of  thy  riches — 

Therefore  thus  saith  the  Lord  God: 
Because  thou  hast  set  thy  heart 

As  the  heart  of  God; 
Therefore,  behold,  I  will  bring  strangers  upon 

thee, 

The  terrible  of  the  nations; 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP <57 

And  they  shall  draw  their  swords  against  the 
beauty 

Of  thy  wisdom, 
And  they  shall  defile  thy  brightness, 

They  shall  bring  thee  down  to  the 

pit; 

And  thou  shalt  die  the  deaths  of  them  that  are 
slain 

In  the  heart  of  the  seas. 
Wilt  thou  yet  say  before  him  that  slayeth  thee : 

I  am  God? 
But  thou  art  man,  and  not  God, 

In  the  hand  of  them  that  defile  thee. 
Thou  shalt  die  the  deaths  of  the  uncircumcised 

By  the  hand  of  strangers; 
For  I  have  spoken, 

Saith  the  Lord  God. 


68  THE    SHIP   "TYRE" 


THE  "  KING  OF  TYRE" 

Moreover  the  word  of  the  Lord  came  unto  me, 
saying:  Son  of  man,  take  up  a  lamentation  for 
the  king  of  Tyre,  and  say  unto  him:  Thus  saith 
the  Lord  God : 

Thou  seal  most  accurate,  perfect  in  beauty, 

Thou  wast  in  Eden  the  garden  of 

God; 
Every  precious  stone  was  thy  covering; 

Odem,  pitdah  and  yahalom, 
Tarshish,  shoham  and  yashepheh, 
Sappir,  nophek  and  bareketh, 

In  gold  finely  wrought  were  they  set. 
In  the  day  of  thy  creation,  with  the  Cherub,  I 
placed  thee 

Upon  the  holy  mountain  of  God; 
Thou  hast  walked  in  the  thick  clouds  and  dark- 
ness, 

The  hailstones  and  coals  of  fire. 
Thou  wast  perfect  in  thy  ways  from  the  day  of 
thy  creation, 

Till   unrighteousness   was   found    in 

thee. 

Filled  with  violence  and  with  sin,  thou  hast  been 
cast  forth  as  defiled 

Out  of  the  mountain  of  God ; 
The  Cherub  hath  driven  thee  out 

From  the  midst  of  the  stones  of  fire. 


ALLEGORY  OF   THE  SHIP 


Thy  heart  was  lifted  up  because  of  thy  beauty, 

By  thy  splendor  is  thy  wisdom  cor- 

rupted. 
By  reason  of  the  multitude  of  thine  iniquities 

I  have  cast  thee  to  the  ground; 
I  have  laid  thee  before  kings, 

That  they  may  gaze  upon  thee. 
In  the  unrighteousness  of  thy  traffic 

Thou  hast  denied  thy  sanctuary; 
Therefore  will  I  raise  up  a  fire  round  about  thee, 

It  shall  devour  thee; 
And  I  will  turn  thee  to  ashes  upon  the  earth 

In  the  sight  of  all  them  that  behold 

thee. 
All  they  that  know  thee  among  the  peoples 

Shall  be  appalled  at  thee; 
Thou  art  come  to  a  terrible  end, 

And  shalt  be  no  more  in  the  age. 


Such  are  the  articles  of  commerce  that  ap- 
pear in  these  "commercial  chapters"  of  Ezekiel. 
Clearly  they  do  not  make  up  a  total  of  the  items 
of  trade  of  Tyre  or  of  the  Neo-Babylonian  em- 
pire. This  is  no  list  of  the  articles  dutiable  at 
Tyre,  or  at  Haran  or  Bozrah,  or  taxable  at 
Babylon.  They  are  chosen  because  of  their 
previous  appearance  in  the  Hebrew  scriptures 


70  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

and  their  suggestion  of  tabernacle,  temple, 
palace,  and  priestly  spoil.  They  are  arranged 
by  the  prophet,  true  to  his  emblematic  method, 
as  a  symbolic  geographical  picture.  The  state- 
ments made  as  to  their  origin  are  doubtless  cor- 
rect; but  the  object  in  making  them  was  to  add 
vividness  to  his  lesson  of  the  inviolability  of 
sacred  institutions.  An  economic  commentary 
on  such  a  symbolic  picture  must  have  much  the 
same  standing  as  a  similar  commentary  on  any 
other  work  of  art;  such,  for  instance,  as  Michel- 
angelo's "Last  Judgment,"  Leonardo  da  Vinci's 
"Last  Supper,"  or  a  poem  such  as  the  following: 

Come  with  me  from  Lebanon,  my  spouse,  with  me  from  Lebanon, 
Down  with  me  from  Lebanon  to  sail  upon  the  sea. 

The  ship  is  wrought  of  ivory,  the  decks  of  gold,  and  thereupon 
Are  sailors  singing  bridal  songs  and  waiting  to  cast  free. 

Come  with  me  from  Lebanon,  my  spouse,  with  me  from  Lebanon, 
The  rowers  there  are  ready  and  will  welcome  thee  with  shouts. 

The  sails  are  silken  sails  and  scarlet,  cut  and  sewn  in  Babylon, 
The  scarlet  of  the  painted  lips  of  women  thereabouts. 

And  there  for  thee  is  spikenard,  calamus  and  cinnamon, 
Pomegranates  and  frankincense  and  flagons  full  of  wine, 

And  cabins  carved  in  cedar  wood  that  came  from  scented  Lebanon, 
And  all  the  ship  and  singing  crew  and  rowers  there  are  thine. 

Come  with  me  from  Lebanon,  my  spouse,  with  me  from  Lebanon, 
They're  hauling  up  the  anchor  and  but  tarrying  there  for  thee; 

The  boatswain's  whistling  for  a  wind,  a  wind  to  blow  from  Lebanon, 
A  wind  from  scented  Lebanon  to  blow  them  out  to  sea. 

— I.  C.  in  Mosher's  Amphora 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP  71 


NOTES  TO  THE  ALLEGORY 

ANCIENT  SHIPS  were  of  similar  designs;  and  as  the  Greeks 
followed  and  developed  Phoenician  ideas,  it  is  possible  from  the 
fuller  accounts  that  remain  of  their  shipbuilding  to  state  the 
principal  features  of  Phoenician  vessels.  Warships  were  light  and 
speedy,  long  and  narrow,  and  depended  for  propulsion  more  on 
oars  than  sails.  Cargo  ships  were  heavy  and  slow,  broad  of  beam, 
and  depended  on  sail  power  with  oars  as  auxiliaries.  Hulls  were  . 
usually  of  pine  on  cargo  ships  and  of  fir  on  warships;  but  cypress 
and  cedar  were  also  used.  Keels  were  of  selected  pine  with  false- 
keels  of  oak;  warships  had  keels  of  oak  with  false-keels  of  beech. 
Pine  and  plane,  elm  and  ash,  mulberry  and  lime  and  acacia,  were 
used  in  the  interior.  The  masts  and  yards,  also  the  oars,  were  of 
fir  or  pine.  The  timbers  were  held  together  by  wooden  pegs  or 
metal  nails,  the  former  preferred;  and  they  could  be  taken  apart 
for  overland  transit.  Oars  were  of  moderate  size,  for  a  crew  could 
make  a  forced  march  when  each  man  was  carrying  his  oar  and 
appurtenances.  The  Phoenicians  built  two-banked  ships  for 
Sennacherib,  and  Herodotus  mentions  three-banked  ships  in  the 
time  of  Necho.  Two-banked  ships  had  118  rowers,  58  in  the  lower 
and  60  in  the  upper  bank.  Three-banked  ships  had  170,  with  30 
working  from  the  upper  deck.  Merchant-ships  had  about  20  on 
the  deck  only.  Warships  with  their  banks  of  oars  were  likened  to 
birds,  and  cargo-ships  to  tubs  or  chests  or  arks.  Phoenician  ships 
had  figureheads  of  horses;  hence  the  fable  of  the  winged  horse, 
which  was  an  oared  ship,  while  the  wooden  horse  of  Troy  may  have 
been  a  cargo-ship  admitted  to  the  harbor.  The  outer  framework 
consisted  of  keel  and  ribs;  there  was  no  stern  post,  the  planking 
being  carried  upward  to  meet  the  deck;  there  was  no  stem  post, 
unless  built  to  carry  a  ram.  The  skin  was  formed  of  planking  laid 
upon  the  ribs,  and  fastened  through  them  to  the  beams.  It  was 
strengthened  by  long  timbers  fastened  outside,  known  as  belts; 
warships  were  further  strengthened  by  cables  or  girdles.  The 
Phoenician  ships  built  for  Sennacherib  had  the  oars  of  the  first 
bank  passed  over  the  gunwale,  and  those  of  the  second  bank  mid- 
way between  the  tholes  of  the  first  and  somewhat  lower  down. 
They  were  of  no  great  height;  1  foot  of  freeboard  was  calculated 
for  each  bank  of  oars,  and  the  upper  decks  of  these  Phoenician 


72  THE  SHIP   "TYRE" 

ships  was  about  4  feet  above  the  gunwale.  This  was  a  heavy 
superstructure,  and  was  the  post  of  combatants  while  in  action, 
and  occupied  by  dignitaries  during  voyages.  Attached  to  its 
upright  timbers  and  about  1  foot  above  the  gunwale  was  the  gang- 
way, where  combatants  were  also  posted.  Ships  carried  screens 
to  close  the  space  between  upper  deck  and  gangway,  and  to  protect 
the  rowers  from  missiles;  there  were  also  bulwarks  for  the  water. 
Awnings  were  spread  along  each  side  to  cover  the  open  space  below 
the  upper  deck,  to  protect  the  rowers  from  sun  and  spray  and  to 
conceal  the  fighters  for  a  surprise  attack;  every  ship  carried  2  pairs, 
one  of  sail  cloth,  and  one  of  horse-hair  or  hide.  The  former  were 
of  the  same  material  as  the  sails,  and  were  stored  in  the  same 
chests.  There  were  little  decks  at  stem  and  stern,  somewhat 
above  the  level  of  the  beams;  these  supported  the  deck-structure. 
The  stern  had  a  seat,  or  a  tier  of  seats,  for  the  helmsman  and 
others  in  command;  but  this  did  not  necessitate  a  separate  deck 
there.  Ships  generally  had  a  deck-house  at  the  stern  for  the  com- 
mander and  his  friends,  usually  of  wicker  work  or  awnings,  but 
sometimes  of  solid  construction.  These  might  be  fitted  up  with 
many  luxuries,  and  with  covered  walks  alongside,  with  vines  and 
fruit  trees  in  pots.  Ships  also  carried  turrets  on  the  upper  deck- 
ing to  enable  their  crews  to  shoot  down  missiles  on  an  enemy.  A 
merchant-ship  might  carry  as  many  as  8  turrets  of  3  stories.  The 
rams  were  of  bronze,  usually  a  sheathing  over  a  core  of  timber,  and 
often  had  3  teeth.  Later  they  were  given  the  shape  of  a  boar's 
head.  Ships  carried  statues  of  gods  or  goddesses  to  distinguish 
their  allegiance,  or  to  obtain  a  safe  voyage.  Steering  was  done 
with  a  pair  of  large  oars  at  the  stern,  one  on  either  side,  and 
fastened  by  loops  of  rope  to  the  sides  of  the  ship  just  below  the 
gunwale.  There  was  a  tiller  in  the  loom  or  handle  of  each  steering 
oar  and  a  piece  of  gear  to  join  these  tillers,  so  that  the  helmsman 
could  turn  both  oars  at  once.  The  Phoenician  ships  built  for 
Sennacherib  had  1  mast,  1  yard,  1  square  sail,  2  fore  stays  and  1 
back  stay,  4  other  ropes,  and  sheets,  braces  and  brailing  ropes. 
These  last  were  passed  through  rings  on  the  fore  side  of  the  sail 
(in  Egypt  on  the  after  side)  then  through  separate  pulleys  on  the 
yard;  thence  to  the  stern,  where  they  were  made  fast  to  pins,  so 
that  the  steerer  could  manage  them.  When  brailed  up,  the  sail 
hung  in  baggy  folds,  so  that  in  reliefs  on  coins  it  looks  like  separate 
sails  on  the  same  yard.  The  sail  was  generally  of  linen,  but  also  of 
papyrus  and  other  rushes.  Sail  cloth  was  of  different  qualities. 


ALLEGORY  OF   THE   SHIP  73 

The  edges  of  the  sail  were  bound  with  hide;  that  of  the  hyena  or  the 
seal  especially,  because  of  the  belief  in  their  special  efficacy  for 
keeping  off  the  lightning.  The  ropes  were  sometimes  of  hides, 
but  oftener  of  papyrus,  flax  or  hemp.  Sails  were  often  colored; 
black  was  a  sign  of  mourning,  and  purple  or  scarlet  the  badge  of  an 
admiral  or  monarch.  In  war  time  the  sails  were  dyed  the  color  of 
sea-water.  In  Roman  times  the  titles  or  emblems  of  the  emperor 
were  displayed  on  his  sail  in  gold.  The  admiral's  ship  was  dis- 
tinguished by  some  sort  of  flag  in  addition  to  any  purple  or  scarlet 
sail  that  she  might  carry;  after  dark  a  light  was  shown  instead  of 
the  flag.  In  a  Roman  fleet  the  admiral's  ship  carried  3  lights,  each 
transport  2,  and  each  warship  1.  Enemies  were  misled  by  screen- 
ing lights  or  setting  them  adrift.  A  national  flag  or  emblem  was 
carried  in  battle.  The  admiral's  ship  carried  signal-flags;  a  purple 
signal  meant  going  into  action.  Signals  were  also  flashed  from 
shields. 

(Torr,  Ancient  Ships;  from  which  the  following  references: — Iliad, 
i,  434,  480-481;  ii,  509-510;  vii,  5-6;  xvi,  482-484;  Odyssey,  ii,  46, 
426-427;  iii,  10-11;  iv,  708-709;  v,  163-164,  239-260,  316-318;  ix, 
322-324;  xi,  124-125;  xii,  170-172,  178-179,  409-412,  422-425; 
xiii,  74;  xxi,  390-391;  Herodotus,  i,  24;  iii,  36,  86,  96;  iii,  37,  136; 
vi,  95,  115;  vii,  25,  34,  100,  181;  viii,  92,  97,  118;  Thucydides,  i, 
10,  49,  ii,  56,  93;  Xenophon,  Anab.  v,  8,  1;  v,  1,  11-16;  Hellen.  i, 
6,  19,  ii,  1,  27;  Aeschylus,  Sept.  con.  Theb.  62,  857-858;  Persae,  69, 
408-409;  Prometheus,  468;  Euripides,  Iph.  in  Taur.  410,  1043; 
Hecuba,  1080-1081;  Medea,  278;  Troades,  94;  Cyclops,  14-15; 
Helena,  1590-1591;  Iph.  in  Aul.  239-241;  Phaethon,  Fr.  2,  42; 
Pindar,  Isthmia,  iii,  89;  Sophocles,  Andromeda,  Fr.  2,  ap.  Athen. 
xi,  64;  Aristophanes,  Aves,  598;  Equites,  756;  Acharn.  544-547; 
Demosthenes,  in  Lacrit.  18;  Plato,  leges,  p705C,  civitas  p616C, 
politicus  p272E,  Protagoras,  338;  Aristotle,  de  animal,  incessu,  10; 
mechanica,  6,8;  Corp.  Inscr.  Attic,  ii,  797-800,  807-808,  789; 
Arrian,  Anab.  v,  8;  vi.  13;  vii,  16,  19;  Fr.  19  ap.  Suid.;  Strabo,  ii, 
3,  4;  iv,  4,  1;  xv,  1,  15;  xvi,  1,  11;  Epicharmus,  ap.  Athen.  vii,  114; 
Antiphanes,  ap.  Athen.  xi,  102;  Scylax,  peripl.  112;  Theophrastus, 
hist,  plant,  iv,  2,  8;  iv,  8,  4;  v,  1,  6;  v,  7,  3;  Apollonius  Rhodius,  i, 
369-370;  i,  566-567;  ii,  79-81;  Plutarch,  quaest.  conviv.  iv,  2,  1; 
v,  3,  1;  Antonius,  26,  64;  Themistocles,  14;  Demetrius,  43;  de 
fortuna  Rom.  4,  9;  praecept.  ger.  rei  publ.  15,  16;  Theseus,  17; 
Alcibiades,  32;  de  tranq.  anim.  3;  Lysander,  11;  Lucullus,  7; 
Apuleius,  Metamorph.  xi,  16). 


74  THE    SHIP   "TYRE" 

PLACE  OF  TRAFFIC.  LXX,  r<#  ^iropL^  r&v  \aw,  &w6  vyaw 
iroXXwv.  This  assumes  D"KD  instead  of  MT  D"K~^K- 

A  SHIP:  Wellhausen's  restoration,  niJK  before  IJK  ,  to  complete 
the  line. 

MY  SIDES,  etc.:  Cheminant's  reading,  from  LXX  /SeeXe^,  ex- 
tended to  complete  the  verse. 

PRINCES,  etc.:    reading  &  ^y>5fa)  for  tpa*  tf^. 

THE  MATERIALS  of  which  the  ship  "Tyre"  was  built  are  also  ma- 
terials of  which  the  tabernacle  and  temple  were  constructed. 

CYPRESS:  cf.  1  Kings  V,  22;  2  Chron.  II,  7  (temple). 

SENIR:  Deut.  Ill,  9,  "Mount  Hermon  which  the  Amorites  call 
Shenir";  but  1  Chron.  V,  23  and  Cant.  IV,  8  distinguish  it  from 
Hermon.  It  is  Anti-Libanus,  N.  of  Damascus. 

PLANKS:  of  the  hull;  but  cf.  the  BOARDS  of  the  tabernacle,  Ex. 
XXVI,  15,-qBnp  in  both. 

CEDAR:  cf.  1  Kings  V,  22;  2  Chron.  II,  7  (temple). 

LEBANON  was  famous  for  its  forests;  its  cedar  was  sent  to  many 
markets  and  as  tribute  to  many  kings. 

MAST:  in  the  singular;  Phoenician  ships  had  but  one  mast;  cf. 
Layard,  Monuments  of  Nineveh,  II  pi.  71;  Torr,  Ancient  Ships. 
But  cf.  also,  the  PILLARS  of  the  veil,  Ex.  XXVI,  32. 

THE  HIGHEST  OF:  to  complete  the  verse;  so  Bertholet,  Kraet- 
zschmar,  Cheminant. 

BASHAN:  E.  of  the  Jordan  ;  as  to  oaks  of  B.  cf.  Is.  II,  13.  Oak  was 
not  sent  for  the  temple,  but  Bashan  supplied  rams,  the  skins  of 
which  covered  the  tent  of  the  tabernacle;  Ex.  XXVI,  14,  Deut. 
XXXII,  14. 

OARS:  cf.  the  PILLARS  of  the  hangings  of  the  court,  Ex.  XXVI,  10. 

And  this  oak  may  be  an  echo  of  the  oak  under  which  the  stone  was 

set  up  as  witness  of  the  Law:  Josh.  XXIV,  26:  cf.   Isa.  I,  29  for 

earlier  uses  of  oaks. 

IVORY  INLAID:   JR,   larch;  AV  and   RV,  boxwood.      But  the 

reference  is  to  Solomon's  throne,  1  Kings  X,  18. 
SEAT.  That  this  line  is  confused  appears  from  the  diversity  of  the 
translations.  The  ancient  ship  had  its  helmsman's  seat  at  the 
highest  point  above  the  stern,  giving  a  clear  view  of  everything 
in  the  vessel  and  of  the  sea  before  it.  The  reference  is  to  this  seat, 
and  to  the  officer  occupying  it,  rather  than  to  the  benches  of  the 
galley-slaves,  as  AV,  RV,  DV,  or  to  the  deck,  as  JR,  or  to  the 
rudder,  as  Leeser's  version.  The  seat  of  the  helmsman  thus 


_  ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP  _  75 

stands  for  the  royal  throne.  This  was  of  ivory  and  gold.  "Ash- 
urim"  of  AV,  is  wrong  for  "n^Nn  ,  which  is  from  "ifc^N  "to  be  tall" 
and  is  a  species  of  cedar.  It  appears  also  in  Isa.  XL1,  19  together 
with  cypress  and  pine,  clearly  a  group  of  conifers.  "Boxwood"  of 
RV  is  wrong,  and  "larch"  of  JR  is  not  much  better.  This  word 
looks  like  a  continuation  of  the  cedar  and  cypress  of  the  preceding 
couplet,  making  a  triad  of  woods  like  that  in  2  Chr.  II,  7;  hence 
"thyine"  is  preferred  because  of  association  with  that  verse  and 
with  Rev.  XVIII,  12.  The  second  half  of  the  line  is  equally  uncer- 
tain. LXX  suggests  a  sacred  grove:  £|  i\f<pavros  ofccous  dXo-oboeis  &ir6 
vrjauv  -ruiv  Xenet/z-  Ivory  appears  as  coming  from  Nubia  via  Dedan 
(15)  but  W.  M.  Muller  (Asien  u.  Europa,  336)  quotes  a  record  of 
shipment  of  ivory  from  Cyprus  to  Egypt,  and  suggests  ivory- 
carving  industry  in  Cyprus.  The  text  says  only  that  the  wood 
came  from  the  forest,  or  groves,  of  Cyprus.  "Grove"  suggests  a 
sacred  enclosure,  and  the  seat  itself  may  suggest  the  oracle.  Hence 
the  reading  of  LXX  seems  worth  retaining.  The  helmsman's 
seat  symbolizes  a  throne,  royal  or  oracular,  or  both.  LXX  sug- 
gests Dn^N  IDS-  Targ.,  pjro^fcn  —  Dnt^Kn3-  cf.  Isa. 
XLI,  19, 


An  upper-structure,  as  DV  "cabins"  from  Vulg.  praeteriola, 
might  be  either  the  deck-house  at  the  stern,  or  the  shrine  for  the 
protecting  deity. 

Cedar,  cypress  and  thyine=cedar,  cypress  and  algum  of  2  Chr. 
II,  7,  algum  being  a  late  variant,  a  Pali  word  substituted  for  the 
Hebrew  original. 


Algum  Cedar  Cypress 

DVIK  D^m  2  Chr.  IX,  11 

bpKevOiva  irtvKiva  irebmva. 

cedrina  arceutina  pinea  thyina 


This  -VlfiPKfl  may  therefore  be  a  variant  of  thyim 


76 


THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 


The  following  is  the  classification  of  conifers  given  in  Gray's 
Manual  of  Botany: 


CONIFERAE 


1.  Pinaceae 

1.  Abietineae. 

1.  Pinus 

Pine 

2.  Picea 

Spruce 

3.  Tsuga 

Hemlock 

4.  Abies 

Fir 

5.  Larix 

Larch 

2.  Taxodieae. 

6.  Taxodium 

Bald  Cypress 

3.  Cupressineae. 

7.  Chamaecyparis 

Cypress 

8.  Thuya 

Arbor  Vitae,  White  Cedar,  [Thyme] 

9.  Juniperus 

Juniper,  Red  Cedar 

2.  Taxaceae 

10.  Taxus 

Yew 

The  woods  mentioned  in  these  Old  Testament  lists  are  of  the 
tribe  Cupressineae. 

SHORES  OF  KITTIM.  Kition  was  a  Phoenician  colony  in  Cyprus. 
The  same  word  D"tf  means  "shore"  and  "island."  Whether 
both  wood  and  ivory,  or  the  former  only  came  from  Cyprus,  does 
not  definitely  appear.  Ivory  was  a  product  of  Nubia,  and  ap- 
pears in  this  same  chapter  (v.  IS)  as  coming  through  Dedan;  but 
W.  M.  Miiller  (Asien  u.  Europa,  336)  quotes  a  record  of  shipment 
of  ivory  from  Cyprus  to  Egypt,  and  suggests  ivory-carving  in- 
dustry in  Cyprus  and  Cilicia. 

FINE  LINEN:  cf.  the  VEIL  and  SCREEN.  Ex.  XXVI,  31,  36: 
2  Chron.  Ill,  14. 

EGYPT:  the  linen  of  that  country  was  largely  exported,  and  while 
the  industry  existed  also  in  Phoenicia,  it  is  probable  that  many  of 
the  "Sidonian  fabrics"  mentioned  in  the  Odyssey  were  Egyptian. 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP 77 

SCARLET.  The  first  half  of  this  line  is  supplied  conjecturally  from 
Numbers  II,  2  and  IV,  6-8-13.  The  cloths  of  the  tabernacle 
were  of  three  hues,  blue,  purple  and  scarlet: — 

Blue  n^Dn    1JQ  IH&TIOV  6\ov  vaKlvOivov 

Purple  JD}"IK    "US  IH&TIOV  6\oir6p<f>vpov 

Scarlet  1}W  ny^lfl  *1J3    If^anov  KOKKLVOV 

Sealskins  K>nn  TlJJ 

Standard  fiy] 

Ensigns  Hint* 
Embroidered  Cloth       niDP"13  WW         pkrvos  perd.  TrouciXias 

Twined  Linen  ITK'D  W  fibaaov  Ke/cXcoaju^s 

The  first  two  were  from  the  murex  or  purple  mussel,  the  last  from 
the  kermes  insect.  When  the  camp  was  to  journey,  the  ark  was 
to  be  covered  with  cloth  of  blue  and  sealskin,  the  showbread  with 
cloth  of  scarlet  and  sealskin,  and  the  ashes  from  the  altar  with 
cloth  of  purple  and  sealskin.  When  the  camp  was  pitched,  every 
man  was  to  encamp  by  his  standard,  with  ensigns  according  to  his 
fathers'  houses,  round  about  the  tent  of  meeting.  The  standard 
was  the  larger  banner,  serving  for  three  tribes  together;  the  ensigns 
were  smaller  flags  for  the  separate  tribes.  This  tradition  is  used 
also  in  Cant.  II,  4: 

He  hath  brought  me  to  the  banqueting-house, 
And  his  banner  over  me  is  love. 

According  to  a  rabbinical  tradition,  the  ensign  of  the  tribe  of  Levi 
was  of  three  colors,  white,  black  (blue  purple)  and  red.  Thus  the 
ship  "Tyre",  with  white  sail,  red  standard  and  purple  awning, 
recalls  the  Levites  who  served  in  the  temple,  whereof  the  sacred 
substances  were  all  in  her  hold.  This  half-line  is  not  to  be  deleted, 
as  most  commentators  would  have  it,  but  is  to  be  completed  and 
retained,  as  necessary  to  the  legend. 

ENSIGN:  cf.  Is.  XIII,  2:  "Set  ye  up  an  ensign  upon  the  high 
mountain." 

BLUE  AND  PURPLE:  different  shades  of  the  murex  dye;  "blue 
purple"  and  "scarlet  purple"  in  Cheminant's  reading.  The  refer- 
ence is  to  the  blue,  purple,  scarlet  and  fine  linen  for  the  tabernacle: 
Ex.  XXV,  4.  forifcO  n^DJI  cf.  Assyr.  takiltu  argamannu, 
Delitzsch  AHW  129a. 


THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 


ELISHAH:  perhaps  Carthage,  whose  queen  was  Elissa,  or  Dido 
(so  Movers,  Meyer,  Delitzsch,  Kraetzschmar),  The  Phoenicians 
established  island  colonies  for  murex  culture  as  demand  outran 
supply;  cf.  Tammuz-mourning  on  Paxos,  misinterpreted  as  the 
death  of  Pan,  (Plutarch,  De  Defectu  Orac.  XVII).  Schoff, 
Tammuz,  Pan,  and  Christ,  Open  Court,  XXVI,  9:  XXVII,  8.  W.  M. 
Muller  and  Gunkel  prefer  Alashia  in  Cyprus,  of  the  Tel-el-Amarna 
letters. 

SIDON  had  been  destroyed  by  Esarhaddon  in  B.  C.  676,  but  was 
rebuilt;  cf.  Jer.  XXV,  22,  XXVII,  3;  Ezek.  XXVIII,  20;  Eiselen, 
Sidon,  56-57. 

ARVAD,  now  Ruad,  N.  Phoenician  island  and  town,  mentioned  in 
the  Amarna  letters  and  in  the  Assyrian  annals,  from  Tiglath- 
Pileser  I  who  embarked  in  "ships  of  the  country  of  Arvad"  to 
Ashurbanipal,  whose  feet  a  king  of  Arvad  came  to  Nineveh  to  kiss. 
Strabo,  XVI,  2,  14,  mentions  men  of  Arvad  as  able  mariners. 

SUMUR:  reading  1£¥  for  MT  ^iv  .  so  Cheminant,  following 
Kraetzschmar;  Tyre  in  the  text  (Sur)  being  obviously  an  error. 
Sumur,  Greek  Sf/zvpos,  now  Sumra,  (Zemar  of  Gen.  X,  18  and 
1  Chron.  I,  16)  S.  of  Arvad,  appears  in  the  Amarna  letters;  it 
revolted  against  Tiglath-Pileser  III  and  Sargon. 

GEBAL:  on  the  coast  about  half-way  between  Sidon  and  Arvad; 
often  associated  with  Tyre  and  Sidon  in  the  Assyrian  inscriptions; 
its  men  appear  in  1  Kings  V,  32  as  able  builders;  the  Amarna  letters 
mention  shipping  rivalry  between  Gebal  and  Arvad.  Greek 
Bi^Xos. 

MEHALLEB:  so  Cheminant,  from  his  corrections  in  the  Hebrew; 
appears  in  inscriptions  of  Sennacherib  and  Ashur-natsir-pal;  cf. 
Judges  I,  31;  on  the  site  of  the  modern  Tripoli.  See  however 
Eiselen,  Sidon,  43,  n.  3.  Assumes  tp  ^fl  :tfnD  'BOR"53»  9  is 
parallel  to  27. 

EXCHANGERS:  trade  was  on  a  basis  of  barter,  manufactures  for 
natural  products,  and  required  a  service  other  than  that  for  operat- 
ing the  vessel;  cf.  Berard,  Les  Pheniciens  et  1'Odyssee,  I,  395,  398. 

FOUR  BRANCHES  of  service  in  the  ship  "Tyre"  called  for  the  best 
men  of  the  cities  of  Phoenicia;  the  same  four  appear  at  the  wreck 
of  the  ship,  v.  27. 

PERSIA,  LUD,  PUT.  B1B1  itfl  D1B-  Phoenicians  built  and 
manned  the  Assyrian  navy;  were  maritime  carriers  for  Neo-Baby- 
lonia;  had  been  familiar  for  centuries  with  the  voyages  in  Red 
Sea  and  the  Persian  Gulf.  Hence  it  is  not  impossible  that 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP 79 

these  three  peoples  represent  extremes  in  their  voyages,  and 
that  Lud  is  Lydia,  and  Put,  as  Muller  suggests,  (Asien  u.  Europa, 
114),  the  Land  of  Punt  of  the  Egyptian  inscriptions,  the  shores  of 
the  Gulf  of  Aden,  especially  the  Somali  coast.  It  seems  more 
probable,  however,  that  all  three  are  peoples  found  in  central 
Arabia.  Tyrian  galleys,  coasting  Arabia,  controlled  the  com- 
merce of  Babylonia  on  both  its  seas.  Persian  activity  in  E. 
Arabia  was  constant;  Persian  conquests  of  its  gold  fields 
probably  preceded  the  Persian  conquest  of  Babylon;  the  Periplus, 
33,  has  half  the  S.  coast  Persian;  Hamdani  in  his  Jezirat  has  a 
great  Persian  mining  community  in  the  mountains  of  Yemama. 
Lud  appears  as  a  son  of  Mizraim  (Egypt),  Gen.  X,  13;  and  a 
son  of  Shem,  Gen.  X,  22,  and  if  these  two  passages  in  the 
genealogical  tables  are  of  different  dates,  they  may  refer  to  the 
same  people  in  Arabia.  Glaser  (Skizze  333-337)  believes  Put  to 
be  a  W.  Arabian  people,  S.  of  Jebel  Shammar,  and  N.  of  the 
Minaeans.  He  identifies  them  with  Budaa  or  Putaa  of  the 
Esarhaddon  inscriptions,  in  the  land  of  Bazu  or  Buz  (cf.  Gen. 
XXII,  21-22),  and  with  Puta  of  the  Naqs-i-Rustam  inscription  of 
Darius.  Cush,  Put  and  Ludim  were  auxiliaries  of  Pharaoh 
Necho  against  Nebuchadrezzar  (Jer.  XLVI,  9);  Glaser  suggests  the 
use  of  "Cush"  in  Arabia  to  denote  foreign  influence,  especially 
Persian,  which  grew  notably  before  the  Persian  conquest  of  Baby- 
lon. In  Isaiah  (LXVI,  19)  Tarshish,  Put  and  Lud  appear  to- 
gether as  men  "that  draw  the  bow".  This  is  a  late  text  in  which, 
as  in  1  Kings  X,  21-22  and  II  Chron.  IX,  20-21,  Tarshish  intrudes 
apparently  in  substitution  for  some  Arabian  tribe,  or  perhaps  for 
Persians.  It  seems  probable  that  these  three  names  all  refer  to 
central  Arabia;  that  the  Ophir  voyages  were  undertaken  to  avoid 
the  unsafe  conditions  on  the  caravan  routes  which  they  vaguely 
suggest,  and  that  they  were  discontinued  after  the  resumption  of 
normal  conditions  in  Arabia. 

MEN  OF  WAR:  ships  had  fighting  men  aboard  for  defence,  and 
galleries  outside  the  rowers'  benches  where  they  were  stationed; 
there  were  deck  structures  for  bowmen  and  casters  of  javelins; 
hence  this  section,  criticized  by  some  as  concerned  with  land 
operations  and  outside  the  "ship"  allegory,  is  quite  in  order. 
Cf.  Layard,  Monuments  of  Nineveh,  II  pi.  71,  for  illustrations. 
Cf.  also  the  shields  and  targets  of  the  house  of  the  forest  of 
Lebanon,  1  Kings  X,  16-17. 


80  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

HELECH:  cf.  Jer.  XV,  13;  Chalkis  W.  of  Damascus  (so  Winckler); 
Halevy  suggests  a  Phoenician  colony  in  Cilicia. 

GAMMADIM:  cf.  Hamath,  Gen.  X,  18.  Babylonian  Kumidi, 
Egyptian  Kamadu,  a  district  in  S.  Phoenicia  (so  Kraetzschmar;  cf. 
Muller,  Asien  u.  Europa,  193,  396). 

BDELLIUM,  Gen.  II,  12:  n5"U  from  root  $-ft  select,  precious; 
rabb.  int.,  pearl. 

CORAL,  Ezek.  XXVII,  16:  niDNI  from  root  QfcO  costly,  rabb. 
int.  coral,  but  the  same  word  means  coral  and  pearl,  and  in  the 
original  the  two  passages  were  probably  identical. 

PEARL,  Rev.  XVIII,  12,  16:  this  perhaps  gives  the  correct  reading 
of  the  two  preceding.  Cf.  Assyr.  inscrr.  "product  of  the  sea." 

PROSE  INTERLUDE:  Cheminant  would  carry  12-24  to  the  end 
of  the  chapter,  separating  it  from  the  "ship"  allegory;  but  the 
order  of  the  text  is  more  in  the  Hebrew  method. 

TARSHISH:  here  probably  Tartessus  (Herodotus  IV,  152)  in 
Baetica,  S.  Spain,  near  the  modern  Cadiz.  The  metals  are  pro- 
duced in  Spain  or  could  have  been  brought  thither.  The  coast 
from  Cadiz  to  Huelva  commands  the  valleys  of  the  Guadalquivir, 
and  the  Guadiana,  one  of  the  richest  mineral  districts  in  Europe.  A 
town  named  Tharsis,  20  m.  N.  of  Huelva,  maintains  the  tradition. 
Benjamin  of  Tudela,  however,  identifies  Tarshish  with  the 
region  of  Tarsus;  he  refers  to  the  port  of  Malmistras,  "which 
is  Tarshish,  situated  by  the  sea;  and  thus  far  extends  the  kingdom 
of  the  Javanim  or  Greeks"  (ed.  Adler,  p.  15).  The  products 
named  for  Tarshish  are  quite  possible  for  Asia  Minor,  if  we  read 
zinc  for  tin;  both  were  alloys  of  copper,  the  distinction  between 
them  was  seldom  understood,  and  the  reference  is  to  the  vessels  of 
the  temple.  There  is  some  reason  to  prefer  this  reading,  which 
would  confine  Ezekiel's  trade-picture  to  ports  within  his  own  range 
of  acquaintance. 

SILVER:  the  reference  is  to  the  sockets  and  hooks  of  the  tabernacle, 
Ex.  XXVI,  19,  21,  25,  32. 

IRON:  for  the  temple,  1  Chron.  XXIX,  2;  for  its  purification  as 
spoil,  Num.  XXXI,  22;  armor  for  Solomon's  army,  2  Chron.  IX, 
24. 

TIN:  as  above,  1  Chron.  XXIX,  2;  Num.  XXXI  22.  An  ingredient 
of  bronze,  for  weapons,  and  of  brass,  for  vessels,  utensils,  and 
pillars. 


»     •  a    '    )  o  >• 


MOUNT  ARARAT 


MOUNT  DEMAVEND 

(See  pp.  39,  43,  90,  91) 


Reproduced  from  Maspero,  The  Passing  of  the  Empire}. 
D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  publisher* 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP 81_ 

LEAD:  an  item  of  spoil  to  be  purified,  Num.  XXXI,  22;  perhaps 
confused  also  with  zinc,  a  product  of  Spain,  and  an  ingredient  of 
brass. 

WARES,  not  fairs  as  AV:  cf.  Toy,  and  Haupt's  note,  Sacred  Books 
of  O.  T.,  12. 

JAVAN:-Ionia,  -W.  Asia  Minor,  the  Aegean  islands,  and  the  Greek 
settlements  on  the  Black  Sea  coast  of  Asia  Minor. 

TUBAL:  Tabalu  of  the  Assyrian  inscriptions,  Tibareni  of  Herodotus 
(III,  91;  VII,  78)  dwelt  from  the  Anti-Taurus  to  the  Black  Sea. 
Cf.  Tubal-Cain  of  Gen.  IV,  22. 

MESHECH:  Assyr.  Musku,  Herod.  Moschi;  northern  Asia  Minor 
to  E.  of  Taurus. 

JAVAN,  TUBAL  AND  MESHECH  are  sons  of  Japheth  in  the  tribal 
lists,  Gen.  X,  2. 

PERSONS  OF  MEN:  DTK  B>DJ  here  and  Lev.  XXIV,  17: 
Num.  XXV,  40,  46:  1  Chron.  V,  21.  Tyre  had  an  active  slave- 
trade  (Joel  IV,  6;  Amos  I,  9);  Herodotus  mentions  Greek  slaves 
in  Egypt  (II,  135)  and  slave  markets  at  Samos,  Sardis  (III,  48) 
Ephesus  (VIII,  105)  Chios;  Xenophon  (Anab.  I,  10)  mentions  a 
market  at  Miletus.  But  our  reference  is  rather  to  the  "persons" 
who  were  set  apart  as  priestly  spoil,  Num.  XXXI,  28.  And  may 
we  not  infer  that  "persons"  suggest  also  the  captives  by  Chebar? 

VESSELS  OF  BRASS:  from  the  Chalybean  copper  field  above  men- 
tioned. Brass  was  used  in  the  tabernacle,  especially  for  the  altar 
and  its  utensils;  (Ex.  XXVII,  2-6)  in  the  temple  (1  Chron.  XXIX, 
2;  2  Chron.  II,  13)  especially  for  the  entrance  pillars  (1  Kings  VII, 
15-22);  and  when  Ezekiel  wrote,  Nebuchadrezzar's  pillage  of 
pillars,  altar  and  utensils,  and  brazen  sea  from  the  temple,  was 
clearly  remembered  (2  Kings  XXV,  13-17).  They  were  stored  in 
the  treasure-house  at  Babylon. 

TOGARMAH:  in  Gen.  X,  3,  a  son  of  Corner,  son  of  Japheth. 
Armenia  or  a  portion  of  it:  Delitzsch  quotes  an  Assyrian  inscrip- 
tion concerning  a  town  Tilgarimmu,  on  the  borders  of  Tubal.  Its 
horses  are  described  by  Herodotus  (I,  194,  VII,  40)  Xenophon 
(Anab.  IV,  5,  34)  Strabo  (XI,  13,  9). 

DRAFT-HORSES,  SADDLE-HORSES  AND  MULES:  Cf.  1 
Kings  V,  2  for  the  chariots  and  cavalry  of  Solomon,  and  2  Chron. 
IX,  24,  for  his  mules.  Q^gna  cannot  mean  "horsemen",  as  AV. 
from  LXX  lir-irels.  The  distinction  is  between  saddle  and 
vehicle. 


82  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

DEDAN:  perhaps  a  town  connected  with  Edom  (Jer.  XLIX,  8; 
Ezek.  XXV,  13)  through  which  passed  caravans  from  S.  Arabia. 
"From"  many  isles,  so  LXX,  &ird  rfi<ruv.  Ivory  and  ebony 
were  products  of  Nubia;  the  Periplus,  34,  mentions  them,  with 
rhinoceros  horn,  as  exported  from  Ptolemais  Theron  and  Adulis 
on  the  W.  shore  of  the  Red  Sea.  "Tusks"  of  ivory  would  be  more 
correct  than  "horns". 

IVORY  AND  EBONY:  Cf.  Solomon's  throne  (1  Kings  X,  18-20) 
and  his  Ophir  voyages,  which  coasted  Arabia;  (2  Chron.  IX,  21). 

EDOM:  Idumea;  cf.  Num.  XX,  18,  where  Edom  forbade  Moses 
passage.  2  Sam.  VIII,  14;  2  Kings  VIII,  20;  2  Chron.  XXI,  8. 

NOPHEK,  ETC.  The  present  version  is  that  of  Cheminant,  fol- 
lowing the  LXX.  These  precious  stones  are  a  part  of  the 
priest's  breast-plate,  Ex.  XXVIII,  17-20.  MT  has  a  confusion 
of  fabrics  and  gems,  the  verse  beginning  with  D*)K  whence  AV 
Syria.  But  the  fabrics  have  been  listed  in  7,  the  sail  and 
awning;  and  Damascus  follows  in  18;  so  that  Q-jtf  seems  prefer- 
able. LXX  is  corrupt,  having  d^pcoTrous.  But  it  has  only  one 
fabric,  iroi/aXjuara,  qualified  by  ec  Gaptreis,  which  is  also  the 
name  of  a  stone.  Following  Cornill,  MT  JEJIK  and  yQ  are 
omitted;  nOPTI  »  read  b7  LXX  fiWll  »  altered  to  npini, 
and  fcJMfcjnm  inserted  from  LXX,  giving  the  line  a  consistent 
sequence. 

RAMOTH,  AV  and  RV  coral.  niB&O,  P*»M  literally  "high-priced" 
things;  the  interpretation  is  rabbinical.  In  the  Apocalypse 
this  becomes  "pearl";  napyaplra  applies  to  both. 

CHODECOD  MT  1315,  AV  agate,  RV  rubies.  LXX  xoPX6p, 
which  may  be  the  correct  transliteration  of  the  original  Hebrew. 
This  may  have  some  connection  with  root  113,  to  pierce, 
and  (like  the  Babylonian  hulalu  also  from  a  root  meaning  to 
pierce)  may  mean  coral  or  pearl. 

MINNITH:  Ammonite  town  mentioned  in  Judges  XI,  33.  Am- 
mon  was  a  source  of  supply  of  wheat;  a  large  tribute  to  Jotham,  of 
wheat  and  barley,  is  described  in  2  Chron.  XXVII,  5;  Solomon 
gave  Hiram  wheat  and  barley,  wine  and  oil,  in  return  for  cedar, 
cypress  and  marble  from  Lebanon,  2  Chron.  II,  9,  Here  again 
Judah  appears  as  a  dealer  in  Ammonite  grain. 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP  83 


CAKES,  HONEY.   Jjgrt  J  Targ.   K^j>  —  i^p.   Clearly  a  food- 

offering,   possibly   for    n^DI  "fig-cake"    or   D^JV    "raisin-cake". 

That  the  meaning  is  cake  of  some  sort  appears  from  LXX,  nbpuv. 

So  Cant.  II,  5  has  kv  /^po«  for   rWi&?N2,  and  in  Hos.  Ill,  1 

WiWX  D'Ojy  is  raisin-cake,  offered  to  D^n^K~^N- 

Cf.  IK.  XIX,  6:  D1QV1  DJy  >  cakes  baked  on  hot 
stones.  The  reference  is  probably  to  the  shewbread,  Ex. 
XXV,  30;  it  was  baked  in  twelve  cakes,  Lev.  XXIV,  5. 
WHEAT  was  specified  for  the  flour  for  the  tabernacle  offering, 
Ex.  XXIX,  2,  also  cakes  unleavened  mingled  with  oil.  "Cakes'* 
is  the  LXX,  /ifcpwv,  rendered  in  Cant.  II,  5  as  "dainties"  and 
in  Hosea  III,  1  as  "cakes".  The  Targum  has  "parched  corn", 
which  was  the  meal  offering  of  firstfruits,  Lev.  II,  14.  HONEY 
was  forbidden  for  the  burnt  offering,  Lev.  II,  11;  but  not  for  the 
shewbread;  and  it  had  an  important  part  in  the  tradition;  balm  and 
honey,  spices  and  myrrh,  nuts  and  almonds,  made  up  the  present 
for  the  ransom  of  Benjamin,  Gen.  XLIII,  11;  and  it  was  by 
Jonathan's  eating  wild  honey,  in  disobedience  of  his  father  Saul's 
command,  that  a  victory  was  gained  over  the  Philistines.  1  Sam. 
XIV,  24-31.  Honey  was  the  first  ingredient  of  the  Egyptian 
kyphi:  Plutarch,  de  Is.  et  Osir.  81. 

OIL,  olive  oil,  an  important  product  of  Palestine.  It  was  burned  in 
the  lamp  before  the  veil,  Ex.  XXVII,  20-21.  The  cakes  and  wafers 
of  the  offering  were  anointed  with  it,  Ex.  XXIX  2;  it  was  the 
basis  of  the  anointing  oil,  Ex.  XXX,  24. 

BALM;  a  concoction  of  the  juices  of  several  trees  and  shrubs  native 
in  Palestine:  perhaps  Liquidambar,  Balsamodendron,  and  Pistacia. 
As  ushu  it  appears  in  Babylonian  inscriptions,  and  as  su-ho  it  was 
carried  even  to  China  (Glaser,  Skizze,  359-366;  Hirth,  China  and 
the  Roman  Orient,  263).  Cf.  Gen.  XXXVII,  25,  XLIII,  11.  It 
may  have  been  the  same  as  the  stacte  of  the  incense,  Ex.  XXX,  34. 

DAMASCUS:  situated  at  the  meeting-point  of  the  caravan  routes 
between  the  Euphrates,  the  Mediterranean  and  the  Nile,  this  was 
an  ancient  center  of  trade.  Strabo  says  that  during  the  Persian 
period  it  was  one  of  the  best  cities  in  Syria  (XV,  2,  20). 

WINE  OF  HELBON:  Assyrian  Hilbunu,  N.  W.  of  Damascus.  Men- 
tioned in  Assyrian  wine-lists  (I  Rawl.  65,  1,  24)  also  of  Nebuchad- 
rezzar. The  Persian  kings  had  it  (Strabo,  XV,  3,  22);  but  the 
reference  is  to  the  drink-offering,  Ex.  XXIX  40;  and  to  the  law 
of  tithes,  Deut.  XIV,  26. 


84  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 


SHEEPSKINS:  -|n¥  ID*  Targum,  rather  than  "wool"  of  the 
Hebrew.  Sahar  may  be  the  same  as  Sicharia  between  Palestine 
and  the  Euphrates.  The  reference  is  to  the  rams'  skins  for  the 
tent-covering,  Ex.  XXVI,  14.  LXX  has  2pia  kn  MeX^rou,  but 
fjujXcoT-fi  is  to  be  assumed;  Targ.  n^Q.  The  same  word  is  used 
by  LXX  for  Elijah's  mantle,  IK.  XIX,  13:  irniK3  from  YlK 
"large";  it,  too,  was  probably  of  sheepskin. 

VEDAN,  JEVAN,  UZAL:  MT  5nKD  in  m  »  which  readily 
admits  of  this  version.  Cf.  Glaser,  (Skizze,  327-437)  who  locates 
all  three  in  a  line  through  Medina  to  Jebel  Shammar.  Vedan  is 
Waddan  between  Mecca  and  Medina;  Jevan  (cf.  the  Jevanim  of 
Joel  IV,  6,  who  were  associated  with  Sheba)  is  Jaun  or  Jajn,  about 
24  Arabic  miles  from  Medina;  Uzal  he  would  identify  with  Azalla 
of  the  Ashurbanipal  inscriptions,  10  miles  E.  of  Medina,  by  the 
Wadi  el  Hams.  But  the  southern  Uzal,  the  modern  Sanaa, 
150  m.  NNE.  of  Mocha,  is  a  possibility,  as  is  the  port  of  Ocelis  at 
the  straits)  cf.  Periplus,  25).  "Javan"  is  less  probable.  Pliny 
(VI,  159)  mentions  a  Milesian  colony  Ampelone,  identified  by 
Sprenger  with  Wadi  El  Amud;  but  whether  it  existed  in  Ezekiel's 
day  is  uncertain. 

MASSIVE  IRON:  MT  HOT  ^12-  AV  "bright  iron"; 
Kraetzschmar  suggests  "finely  worked",  and  Cheminant  "well 
polished".  But  we  may  have  here  a  correct  description  of  the 
crucible  iron  of  central  and  southern  India,  which  the  Periplus 
(6)  mentions  as  coming  to  the  port  of  Adulis.  Cf.  Schoff,  The 
Eastern  Iron  Trade  of  the  Roman  Empire,  JAOS  35,  iii,  224,  239. 
This  iron  came  to  the  market  in  round  cakes,  and  was  then  fash- 
ioned into  weapons.  Whether  this  sea-trade  had  begun  in 
Ezekiel's  time  is  uncertain.  Iron  was  produced  in  Yemen,  and 
more  plentifully  in  Nubia,  whence  it  could  have  reached 
Arabia  across  the  Red  Sea  as  ivory  did.  The  text  may  mean  no 
more  than  "pig  iron".  Ezekiel's  reference  is  to  iron  as  a  material 
for  the  temple,  1  Chron.  XXIX,  2;  if  for  weapons,  cf.  the  puri- 
fication list  in  Num.  XXXI,  21-24. 

CASSIA:  an  element  in  the  anointing  oil,  Ex.  XXX,  24.  The 
Babylonian  kasu  was  apparently  senna,  (a  leguminous  shrub, 
Cassia  angustifolia),  for  it  was  a  purge  (Jastrow,  Medicine  .of  the 
Babylonians  and  Assyrians,  Trans.  Roy.  Soc.  Med.  7,  2,  133). 
The  Roman  cassia  was  cinnamon,  from  S.  India  and  E.  Himal- 
ayas. The  cassia  of  Exodus  and  Ezekiel  may  have  been  the 
bark  of  some  variety  of  laurel,  related  to  the  cinnamon,  produced 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP 85 

in  the  Horn  of  Africa,  "from  the  eastern  termination  of  the 
Singali  Mts.  to  Hafun  (below  C.  Guardafui),  on  the  southern  slope 
of  the  hills  facing  the  humid  SW.  monsoons,  and  probably  standing 
on  a  silicious  rock  succeeding  to  the  limestone"  (Cooley,  JRAS 
1849,  19,  166-191);  but  inquiries  recently  made  in  this  region,  the 
Mijertain,  now  mainly  Italian  Somaliland,  by  Drake-Brockman, 
failed  to  produce  any  evidence  of  its  existence.  Italian  explora- 
tions to  date  indicate  the  total  absence  of  laurel  varieties  in  the 
Horn  of  Africa,  because  of  the  limestone  and  calcareous  clay 
everywhere  found  in  that  region.  Lauraceae  will  not  grow 
where  lime  is  present  in  the  soil.  For  earlier  references  see 
note  on  p.  25.  There  is  some  reason  to  think  that  Indian 
steel  and  cinnamon  both  reached  the  ports  of  S.  Arabia  in 
Ezekiel's  time.  But  Indian  evidence  is  lacking;  the  Baveru 
Jataka,  which  describes  a  sea-voyage  to  Babylon,  is  dated  about  a 
century  later  (B.  C.  480)  Rhys  Davids,  Buddhist  India,  104. 
Cf.  a  passage  indicating  more  primitive  sea-trade,  quoted  by 
Rhys  Davids  from  the  Kevaddhu  Sutta  (Digha  Nikaya)  JRAS 
1899,  p.  432.  Glaser  (Skizze  40, 41)  preferred  to  identify  EzekiePs 
cassia  as  kadi,  an  aromatic  palm  of  Yemen,  Pandanus  odora- 
tissimus.  The  Hebrew  word  translated  cassia  means  "things 
cut,"  and  cinnamon  means  "things  bundled".  These  words 
could  be  applied  to  many  things.  For  senna,  they  could  dis- 
tinguish between  leaf  and  pod;  and  for  the  tree  laurel,  between 
the  coarse  outer  bark  and  the  tender  rolled-up  inner  bark.  Her- 
odotus (2,  86;  3,  111)  mentions  Kaala.  as  a  spice  brought  from 
Arabia,  and  remarks  that  the  Greeks  had  the  word  tuvvinid^Mv 
from  the  Phoenicians  as  an  equivalent  to  an  Arabian  word 
Kapipea  meaning  "cut  sticks."  Ben  Sira  (Ecclus.  XXIV,  IS) 
connects  cinnamon  with  aspalathus  (Genista  acanthoclada)  a 
thorny  shrub  of  Palestine,  yielding  a  fragrant  oil. 
mp  things  cut ;  pD3p  bundled ;  niS^VP  stripped. 
CALAMUS:  an  element  in  the  anointing  oil,  Ex.  XXX,  24.  Jeremiah 
(VI,  20)  mentions  "incense  from  Sheba,  and  sweet  cane  from  a  far 
country",  conceivably  India.  It  may  have  been  the  lemon-grass, 
Andropogon  schoenanthus;  but  Acorus  calamus  is  also  to  be  con- 
sidered. Pliny  (HN  13,  2)  distinguishes  between  "Syrian  calamus'* 
and  "Syrian  sweet-rush",  both  components  of  the  Parthian  regal 
ointment.  He  says  (21,  70)  that  the  best  came  from  near  the 
temple  of  Jupiter  Ammon  in  Egypt.  All  of  which  is  more  con- 
fusing than  helpful.  These  three  items  from  Uzal  suggest  the 


86  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

port  of  Ocelis,  below  Muza  (Periplus,  25)  which  was  directly  at  the 
straits  of  Bab-el-mandeb,  and  which  Pliny  (6,  104)  says  was  the 
port  for  Indian  shipping. 

DEDAN:  this  is  not  the  same  as  the  Dedan  of  v.  15.  It  was  in 
relations  with  Kedar  and  Teima,  Is.  XXI,  13,  Jer.  XXV,  23-24. 
Minaean  inscriptions  enable  us  to  locate  it  at  or  near  El-Ela. 
(Jaussen  and  Savignac,  Revue  Biblique,  1910,  531;  cf.  Glaser, 
Skizze,  392). 

BEASTS:  ^an  HJ7  not  saddle-cloths,  as  AV,  RV,  JR.  Syriac  and 
LXX  agree  in  the  present  reading:  KTTIVWV  b(\eKTuv.  So 
Gen.  XLV,  17,  "lade  your  beasts,  and  go".  Cf.  the  mules  of 
Solomon's  gifts,  2  Chron.  IX,  24,  and  the  priestly  spoil  of  asses, 
Num.  XXXI,  28.  ^sn  is  "loose";  instead  of  a  "spread-out" 
cloth,  it  might  be  a  led,  rather  than  a  harnessed,  beast.  LXX 
assumes  yrjpj  "PJO*  anc^  TJD  means  beasts  of  burden:  Gen. 
XLV,  17. 

ARABIA  AND  KEDAR:  an  inscription  of  Ashurbanipal  also  men- 
tions Kiidri  and  Aribi  together.  These  Arabs  were  a  tribe  east  of 
Edom.  Kedar  is  an  Ishmaelite  tribe  of  the  desert,  the  Cedrei  of 
Pliny,  H.  N.  5,  12.  "Their  territory  may  correspond  more  or  less 
to  that  of  the  great  tribe  of  the  Shararat  of  our  time,  camped 
ordinarily  between  Wadi  Sirhan  and  el-Fedjer  to  the  NW.  of 
Teima"  (Jaussen  and  Savignac,  Revue  Biblique,  1910,  530;  cf. 
Gen.  XXV,  13.) 

LAMBS,  RAMS  AND  GOATS:  the  LXX  has  camels  in  place  of 
lambs;  but  these  are  beasts  of  the  priestly  tradition,  and  the  lambs 
are  for  the  sacrifice,  Ex.  XXIX,  38;  the  rams  likewise,  Ex.  XXIX, 
1;  the  goats  were  the  sin  offering  (Lev.  IX,  3)  and  they  furnished 
the  hair  from  which  were  made  the  curtains  for  the  tent  over  the 
tabernacle,  Ex.  XXVI,  7. 

SHEBA  AND  RAAMAH:  two  widely-separated  places,  one  in  SW, 
the  other  in  SE.  Arabia.  But  caravan-routes  from  both  met  in  the 
Hedjaz  and  proceeded  toward  Edom.  Sheba  is  the  Sabaean 
kingdom,  Arabia  Felix:  Herodotus,  III,  107-112;  Strabo,  XVI,  4, 
19;  PHny,  H.  N.  VI,  32.  For  the  caravans  bringing  gold  and 
incense,  cf.  Is.  LX,  6;  and  for  the  visit  of  the  queen  of  Sheba,  1 
Kings  X,  1-13.  The  tribal  tables  throw  light  on  conditions  at 
about  this  time:  (Gen.  X,  7)  "And  the  sons  of  Cush:  Seba,  and 
Havilah,  and  Sabtah,  and  Raamah,  and  Sabteca;  and  the  sons  of 
Raamah,  Sheba,  and  Dedan."  (Cf.  Ps.  LXXII,  10).  The  Sabaeans 
had  possessions  as  far  north  as  Jebel  Shammar;  in  Job  1, 15  and  VI, 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP  87 

19  Sheba  is  a  northern  people.  In  Sargon's  inscription  Sheba 
appears  next  to  Medina,  and  in  Joel  IV,  8  it  is  linked  with  Jevan, 
also  near  Medina.  Cf.  Glaser  on  the  "Cushites",  Skizze,  387-403. 

SPICES:  from  the  S.  Arabian  caravan-routes;  these  included  myrrh 
and  frankincense,  and  possibly  aloes  and  cinnamon.  The  Egyp- 
tian Punt  expeditions  brought  back  "myrrh,  ebony  and  ivory,  gold, 
cinnamon,  incense,  eye-paint,  apes,  monkeys,  dogs,  panther-skins, 
natives  and  their  children".  Incense-trees  were  planted  in  the 
court  of  the  temple;  "heaven  and  earth  are  flooded  with  incense; 
odors  are  in  the  Great  House"  (Breasted,  Ancient  Records  of 
Egypt,  II,  288).  The  Papyrus  Harris  shows  that  frankincense 
was  by  far  the  most  treasured  of  the  aromatics.  There  were 
special  rooms  in  the  temple  at  Jerusalem  for  storing  it  under  priestly 
guard  (1  Chron.  IX,  26-30)  and  a  specified  manner  of  preparing 
the  incense  for  the  ritual  (Ex.  XXX,  34-35).  When  one  of  these 
rooms  was  occupied  as  a  dwelling,  it  was  considered  a  sacrilege 
(Nehemiah  XIII,  4-9).  Cf.  Cant.  Ill,  6;  Is.  LX,  6.  The  Nimrud 
inscription  of  Tiglath-pileser  III  records  tribute  from  Merodach- 
baladan;  gold,  precious  stones,  product  of  the  sea  (coral?  pearls?), 
ushu  wood,  ellutu  wood,  party-colored  clothing,  all  kinds  of  spices. 
Herodotus  (III,  97)  says  that  the  Arabs  brought  to  Darius  annual 
tribute  of  1,000  talents'  weight  of  frankincense,  and  that  a  similar 
quantity  was  burnt  yearly  by  the  Chaldeans  on  the  altar  of  Bel  at 
Babylon  (I,  183).  Alexander  counselled  economy  at  the  Mace- 
donian altars  until  he  had  conquered  the  incense  lands  (Pliny, 
H.  N.  XII,  32).  For  the  customs  and  restrictions  as  to  gathering 
and  transporting  frankincense,  cf.  Pliny,  XII,  30;  Periplus,  24, 
29,  32. 

PRECIOUS  STONES:  from  the  Yemama  and  the  Persian  Gulf, 
from  Nubia  and  India  and  Ceylon;  the  reference  is  to  the  priest's 
breastplate,  for  which  stones  came  also  through  Edom. 

GOLD:  the  principal  Arabian  goldfields  were  in  the  central  moun- 
tains; cf.  Glaser's  list  from  Hamdani's  Jezirat  (Skizze,  347-350). 
The  Wadi  er  Rumma  and  the  Wadi  ed  Dawasir  were  worked  from 
ancient  times,  and  caravan  routes  led  N.  E.  to  the  Euphrates,  E. 
to  the  coast  of  the  Persian  Gulf,  W.  to  the  great  N.-S.  Arabian 
route,  S.W.  to  Sheba.  The  gold  that  came  from  Ophir  (2  Chron. 
VIII,  18)  was  "gold  of  Parvaim"  (2  Chron.  Ill,  6),  that  is,  Sak 
el  Farwain,  near  the  Wadi  er  Rumma  and  W.  of  Rass.  Gold  was 
received  also  from  Nubia,  via  Sheba.  The  reference  is  to  the 
gold  of  the  tabernacle,  Ex.  XXV,  3  etc. 


88  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

HARAN:  Assyrian,  Harranu,  Greek  Xa/5/iA,  was  in  N.  W. 
Mesopotamia,  on  the  Balikh,  an  affluent  of  the  Euphrates,  S.  E. 
of  Edessa;  it  was  a  meeting-point  of  Syrian  and  Mesopotamian 
caravan  routes. 

CANNEH:  Kullani  of  the  inscriptions,  against  which  Tiglath- 
pileser  III  led  an  expedition;  in  the  district  of  ladi;  Calno,  Is.  X,  9; 
Calneh,  Amos  VI,  2.  Greek  Xca>&a. 

SHEBA  in  23,  not  in  LXX. 

EDEN:  the  Bit-Adini  of  the  inscriptions,  Beth-Eden  of  Amos  I, 
5;  cf.  Is.  XXXVII,  12,  "children  of  Eden  in  Telassar",  whence, 
perhaps,  the  "Asshur"  in  the  Hebrew  text.  Middle  Euphrates  W. 
of  the  Balikh.  Here  the  Hebrew  again  inserts  "Sheba";  but  it  is 
apparently  an  interpolation,  and  is  now  omitted.  Glaser  makes 
its  appearance  the  basis  of  arguing  that  Haran,  Canneh  and 
Eden  are  in  S.  Arabia;  but  the  items  of  trade  do  not  support 
him;  fine  textiles  were  not  S.  Arabian  products,  but  were  imported 
there  (Periplus,  24). 

CHILMAD:  Kuulmadara  of  Tiglath-Pileser  III,  in  the  country  of 
Unki, — El  Amk  N.  of  Antioch;  identified  by  Winckler  with  the 
town  of  Gindaros  mentioned  by  Strabo  (XVI,  2,  8)  in  the  same 
region  (so  Cheminant,  following  Sarskowsky). 

GORGEOUS  FABRICS,  MANTLES  OF  BLUE,  CHESTS  OF 
CYPRESS:  a  vivid  picture,  suggesting  the  passage  of  a 
laden  caravan  as  the  prophet  spoke.  Textile  art  and  camel 
caravans  were  familiar  things  in  Babylonia.  But  the  reference 
is,  first,  to  the  priest's  robe  (Ex.  XXVIII,  31-35)  which  was  of 
blue,  embroidered  with  blue,  purple,  scarlet  and  gold;  second,  to 
the  king's  garments  (1  KingsX,  5, 25) ;  third,  perhaps,  to  the  "goodly 
Shinar  mantle"  which  was  among  the  spoil  devoted  to  the  taber- 
nacle that  Achan  of  the  tribe  of  Judah  hid  in  the  earth  under  his 
tent  in  the  days  of  Joshua  (Jos.  VII,  10-26),  and  for  that  sin  was 
stoned  to  death.  The  chest  itself  may  symbolize  the  ark  of  the 
covenant.  >|J3,  from  tJJ  to  hoard  or  store.  The  temple  treasury 
wastitJJ.  MT  has  ift}  D'OVD  *•  LXX  Oqaavpote  &X«cTofo. 
This  D^QVtt  is  a  word  not  elsewhere  found,  and  variously 
rendered:  RV  rich  apparel.  Cheminant  connects  it  with 
Assyr.  burrumu,  woven  in  colors;  but  the  reference  being  to  the 
ark,  and  DTTN  »  cedar,  appearing  in  this  same  phrase,  the 
reading  D^'B^nS  cypress,  is  preferred.  The  chest,  or  ark,  was 


ALLEGORY  OF   THE  SHIP  89 

thus  made  of  the  two  woods  specified  for  the  temple,  cypress  and 
cedar.  The  cords  may  stand  for  the  lacing  of  the  mitre-plate. 
There  is  a  dual  reference  here,  to  the  treasure-house  at 
Babylon,  in  which  the  sacred  vessels  from  the  temple  at  Jeru- 
salem were  stored;  and  to  the  ark  of  the  covenant,  nnyn 
(Ex.  XXV,  22).  The  root  mfc  has  the  same  meaning  as  fj 

CLAP   THEIR   HANDS.     The   line   is   short.     Kr.  inserts 

before  lp*i&5>,  easily  omitted  in  copying,  and   appearing  together 
in  Job  XXVII,  23. 

IN  THE  AGE.  Whether  Q^y  means  "without  end"  as  when 
applied  to  $N  (Gen.  XXI,  23)  or  "a  long  time"  as  Isa.  XLII, 
14,  or  "a  span  of  life"  D^jntf  0  Sam.  I,  22),  depends  upon 
circumstances.  Here  we  may  follow  the  LXX,  els  r6v  aiuva. 

POLITICAL  BACKGROUND:  To  interpret  the  succeeding  oracle 
and  lamentation  upon  the  "prince  of  Tyre",  recent  historical 
events  must  be  recalled.  In  B.  C.  729,  the  great  Assyrian  king 
Tiglath-pileser  III,  after  gaining  control  of  the  Phoenician  seaports 
and  of  all  Babylonia,  put  an  end  to  the  weak  Babylonian  dynasty, 
and  had  himself  invested  with  the  sovereignty  of  Asia  in  the  holy 
city  of  Babylon,  forcing  the  priestly  hierarchy  to  do  his  will. 
Divinity  had  been  attributed  to  the  Babylonian  kings,  but  it  was 
conferred  upon  them  by  the  priests,  and  the  Assyrian  king  took  it 
upon  himself  by  compulsion.  In  722  the  Babylonians  revolted  and 
crowned  Merodach-baladan  their  legitimate  king.  He  reigned  12 
years,  when  he  was  compelled  to  flee  to  the  southern  marshes,  and 
the  Assyrian  Sargon  was  received  by  the  priests  of  Babylon.  His 
son  Sennacherib,  who  succeeded  to  the  throne  in  70S,  and  who 
invaded  Judaea  in  701  and  exacted  a  staggering  tribute  from 
Hezekiah  king  of  Judah,  razed  the  holy  city  of  Babylon  to  the 
ground,  in  691,  and  carried  the  image  of  Bel-Marduk  to  Nineveh. 
(Jastrow,  in  Encycl.  Brit.,  art.  "Babylonia").  Isaiah,  who  is  of 
this  time,  inserts  in  his  prophecy  against  Asshur  the  "parable 
against  the  king  of  Babylon",  who  is  the  king  of  Nineveh;  and  who 
has  angered  the  Almighty  by  saying  in  his  heart,  "I  will  ascend 
into  heaven,  above  the  stars  of  God  will  I  exalt  my  throne;  and  I 
will  sit  upon  the  mount  of  meeting,  in  the  uttermost  parts  of  the 
north;  I  will  ascend  above  the  heights  of  the  clouds;  I  will  be  like 
the  Most  High."  Thus  began  the  tradition  of  a  "king  of  Babylon" 
who  was  really  a  king  of  Assyria,  puffed  up  with  pride  and  clothed 
with  a  divinity  to  which  he  had  no  right. 


90  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

I  AM  A  GOD:  this  expression  of  pride  of  empire  is  the  same  as  that 
of  the  "king  of  Babylon"  of  Is.  XIV,  12-15,  the  "day-star,  son  of 
the  morning." 

The  parable  of  the  king  of  Babylon  was  spoken  against  the 
king  of  Assyria  who  had  pillaged  the  temple.  It  expressed 
political  facts,  and  it  gave  a  measure  of  safety  to  them  that  cir- 
culated this  prophecy  against  the  oppressor.  Similar  circum- 
stances influenced  the  prophecies  of  Ezekiel.  Nebuchadrezzar  of 
Babylon  was  a  worse  oppressor,  a  more  ruthless  pillager  of  the 
temple,  and  Judah  was  captive  in  his  domain.  Thus  there  was 
greater  need  for  giving  cryptic  expression  to  a  prophecy  against 
him.  His  words  of  pride,  his  assumption  of  divinity,  are  the  same 
as  those  recounted  by  Isaiah  of  the  Assyrian,  and  a  like  fate  is 
prophesied  for  him;  but  it  is  spoken  of  one  against  whom  Judah 
had  no  immediate  quarrel,  while  the  oppressor  had,  and  therefore 
would  not  punish  a  cryptic  utterance  against  him.  As  Babylon  for 
Isaiah  represented  Nineveh,  so  Tyre  for  Ezekiel  represented 
Babylon.  Jeremiah,  who  was  EzekiePs  contemporary,  could 
write  plainly  about  Babylon  from  his  refuge  in  Egypt,  and  did  so: 
Cf.  Jer.  LI,  49-58,  63-64. 

SEAL,  i.e.,  he  was  the  impression  or  copy  of  God;  cf.  the  signet 
illfPS  BHP  in  Ex.  XXVII,  36.  Cf.  Cant.  VIII,  6,  also  the  signet 
on  the  mitre-plate,  Ex.  XXVIII,  36. 

Cf.  Zohar,  III,  107:  "At  the  moment  when  the  earthly  union 
takes  place,  the  Holy  One  (blessed  be  He !)  sends  to  earth  a 
form  resembling  a  man,  and  bearing  upon  itself  the  divine 

seal It  is  this  image  which  receives  us  first  on  our  arrival 

into  this  world.  It  grows  in  us  as  we  grow,  and  leaves  us 
when  we  leave  the  world.  This  image  is  from  above.  When 
the  souls  are  about  to  quit  their  heavenly  abode  each  soul 
appears  before  the  Holy  One  (blessed  be  He !)  clothed  with  an 
exalted  form  on  which  are  engraven  the  features  which  it  will 
bear  here  below." 

— Abelson,  Jewish  Mysticism,  165-166. 

EDEN,  THE  GARDEN  OF  GOD:  ) 
THE  HOLY  MOUNTAIN  OF  GOD:  j  1 

divinity  with  which  the  rulers  of  the  dual  kingdom  were  clothed: — 
the  garden  of  Eden  for  the  king  of  Babylon,  and  for  the  Assyrian 
the  holy  mountain  of  the  north.  Tiglath-pileser  in  his  time,  and 
now  Nebuchadrezzar,  "walked  with  the  gods"  in  both  Valhallas. 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP  91 


Politically  it  suggests  that  the  king  governed  from  the  Persian 
Gulf  to  Ararat,  or  Demavend.  Of  no  real  king  of  Tyre  could  this 
have  been  said;  Ezekiel  is  prophesying  for  Nebuchadrezzar  the 
fate  that  the  Babylonian  was  planning  for  his  proud  vassal. 

EDEN  AND  THE  MOUNTAIN  OF  THE  NORTH:  extreme  limits 
of  Semitic  empire-building,  and  more  specifically,  of  Assyrian  con- 
quest. Shalmaneser  II  had  conquered  Urartu;  its  name  meant 
"sacred  ground"  (Sans.  Aryavarta);  its  great  peak,  Mt.  Ararat, 
was  held  to  be  a  divine  abode;  Mt.  Nizir,  one  of  the  "mountains  of 
Ararat"  commanding  the  Assyrian  plain,  was  the  reputed  resting- 
place  of  the  ark  of  the  Chaldean  Noah  (Sayce,  in  Maspero,  Passing 
of  the  Empires,  vii);  Tiglath-pileser  III  had  penetrated  to  the 
heart  of  Media  and  his  army  had  trodden  the  slopes  of  the  sacred 
Demavend,  the  utmost  boundary  mark  of  the  known  world,  and 
he  had  made  the  most  of  the  exploit  (Maspero,  ibid.  142);  he 
had  also  "taken  the  hand  of  Bel"  at  Babylon.  Ezekiel  uses  the 
same  expression  for  Nebuchadrezzar.  The  "Mountain  of  God" 
is  the  "mountain  of  dwelling",  ^yiD"in>  which  corresponds  to 
the  "tabernacle  of  dwelling"  of  the  Hebrews,  "ijnQ  ^HK»  tne 
abode  of  nilY1-  Ezek.  XXVIII,  1  and  14  jointly  are  an  echo  of 
Isa.  XIV,  13;  which  is  an  allusion  to  the  boasting  of  Tiglath- 
pileser  III  over  the  exploit  of  his  army  that  set  foot  upon 
Demavend. 

"Eden  and  the  Mountain",  as  a  political  expression,  parallels 
"Sumer  and  Akkad"  or  "Kengi  and  Uri." 

But  this  passage  is  symbolic  also  of  the  cosmos.  The  Moun- 
tain is  the  dwelling-place  of  the  Most  High,  source  and  goal  of 
all  souls;  Eden  is  the  resting-place  through  which  souls  pass  on 
their  journey  to,  and  from,  the  earth,  and  from  which  they  are 
driven  by  the  guardian  Cherub  upon  their  exchanging  the 
garments  of  light  for  those  of  the  flesh.  This  way  the  "King 
of  Tyre"  had  come;  but  for  him  there  was  no  return,  for  he 
had  exalted  his  earthly  throne  "above  the  stars  of  God". 

EVERY  PRECIOUS  STONE:  a  talismanic  arrangement,  similar 
to  the  high  priest's  breastplate,  suggesting  that  divinity  spoke 
through  the  breast  of  the  king.  The  Hebrew  text  gives  a  nine- 
stone  talisman;  and  notwithstanding  the  LXX  gives  the  twelve- 
stone  arrangement  of  Ex.  XXVIII,  17-20  and  the  nine  stones  are 
rows  1,  4  and  2  of  the  breastplate,  the  nine-stone  arrangement  is 
probably  correct  for  this  passage.  Nine-stone  talismans  appear  in 


92  THE   SHIP   "TYRE" 

the  Babylonian  inscriptions,  and  the  Hindu  naoratna  was  also  of 
nine.  But  if  the  nine  are  correct  for  Babylon,  we  have  an  eight- 
stone  talisman  in  an  Assyrian  inscription,  and  the  Syriac  at  this 
verse  gives  eight  stones.  If  Ezekiel  wrote  correctly,  his  trans- 
lators may  also  be  right  within  their  lights, — the  LXX  for  Jeru- 
salem, and  the  Syriac,  through  some  local  tradition,  for  Nineveh. 

CHERUB:  cf.  the  ark-cover  with  the  cherubim,  Ex.  XXV,  17-18, 
and  the  "chariot"  of  the  cherubim,  1  Chron,  XXIX,  18. 

HAILSTONES:  the  versions  follow   MT.  "stones  of  fire",  a  con- 
densed   expression   clearly   parallel   to   Ps.    XVIII,    13    or    Isa. 
XXX,  30,  "hailstones  and  coals  of  fire";  t?tf~^rU1   VQ   (|3tf) 
shortened  to  BWOaK- 
The  line  being  short,  it  has  been  completed  from  Ps.  above. 

STONES  OF  FIRE:  perhaps  a  suggestion  of  the  lightning,  as  a 
manifestation  of  divine  power,  and  conceived  as  encircling  the 
divine  abode.  Cf.  the  Cherubim  with  their  flaming  swords, 
stationed  at  the  garden  of  Eden  to  shut  out  the  man  and  the  woman 
who,  said  the  Lord  God,  are  "become  as  one  of  us,  to  know  good  and 
evil.'*  (Gen.  Ill,  22-24).  The  Cherub  remains  in  this  lamentation, 
but  he  is  placed,  not  at  the  garden,  but  at  the  holy  mountain,  and 
casts  out  Nebuchadrezzar  like  another  Adam.  (So  Cheminant, 
following  Loisy).  Cf.  also,  the  hailstones  and  coals  of  fire  sur- 
rounding the  Lord  in  Psalm  XVIII,  13;  the  brightness  and  coals  of 
fire  of  2  Sam.  XXII,  13;  and  the  thunders  and  lightnings  of  Ex. 
XIX,  16-18,  XX,  18,  XXIV,  18.  Later,  in  Enoch  LXXI,  5,  the 
abode  of  the  Lord  is  surrounded  with  tongues  of  fire.  "Stones  of 
fire"  suggest  also  meteorites,  as  another  heavenly  manifestation. 

SANCTUARY:  Vulg.  following  LXX,  has  sanctificationem;  but  the 
reference  is  rather  to  the  divine  abode  in  which  the  king  had  been 
placed  and  from  which  the  Cherub  had  driven  him  forth.  But 
the  plural  is  not  required. 

WILL  I  RAISE:  AV,  RV,  JR,  have  these  in  the  past  tense,  but 
the  future  of  the  Vulg.  is  needed  to  complete  the  prophecy. 

SHALT  BE  NO  MORE:  so  the  prophecy  runs  its  course.  In 
Ezek.  XXVI  the  doom  of  the  real  city  Tyre  was  foretold;  in  XXVII 
that  of  the  Tyre  that  carried  the  traffic  of  Babylon,  and  in  minute 
detail  brought  from  their  sources  all  the  materials  of  the  Jewish 
sanctuary  and  ritual,  palace  and  power,  which  Babylon  had  so 
recently  stolen,  and  nothing  beside;  in  XXVIII  that  of  the 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP  93 

monarch  whom  vassal  Tyre  had  enriched,  who  was  about  to  crush 
his  vassal,  and  whose  kingdom  ran  throughout  the  valleys  of  Eu- 
.  phrates  and  Tigris  from  mouth  to  source,  from  the  garden  of  Eden 
to  Ararat  or  Demavend.  Of  Nebuchadrezzar  and  no  other  was 
this  doom  foretold. 

SUBSTITUTION  OF  NAME:  That  such  cryptic  utterances  were 
not  unusual,  and  especially  assumed  of  Ezekiel's  writings,  is  shown 
in  two  passages  from  the  Talmud: 

Whosoever  prieth  into  the  four  things  in  the  matter  of  the 
chariot  in  Ezekiel's  vision — what  is  above,  what  is  beneath, 
what  is  before,  or  what  is  behind — it  were  better  for  him  if  he  had 
never  been  born.  (Chaggigah,  11,  2). 

When  Nero  came  to  the  Holy  Land,  he  tried  his  fortune  by 
belemnomancy  thus: — He  shot  an  arrow  eastward,  and  it  fell 
upon  Jerusalem;  he  discharged  his  shafts  towards  the  four  points 
of  the  compass,  and  every  time  they  fell  upon  Jerusalem.  After 
this  he  met  a  Jewish  boy,  and  said  unto  him,  "Repeat  to  me  the 
text  thou  hast  learned  today."  The  boy  repeated,  "I  will  lay 
my  vengeance  upon  Edom  (i.e.,  Rome)  by  the  hand  of  my 
people  Israel."  (Ezek.  XXV,  14).  Then  said  Nero,  "The  Holy 
One — blessed  be  He! — has  determined  to  destroy  His  Temple 
and  then  avenge  Himself  on  the  agent  by  whom  its  ruin  is 
wrought."  Thereupon  Nero  fled  and  became  a  Jewish  proselyte 
and  Rabbi  Meir  is  of  his  race.  (Gittin,  56,  1). 

DOUBLE  MEANINGS:  Cf.  Koran,  IV,  48:  "There  are  those  of 
the  Jews  who  twist  words  from  their  meaning,  and  say,  We  have 
heard  and  have  resisted;  but  hear  thou  without  understanding." 
PRIESTLY  LISTS:  The  compilation  and  interpretation  of  lists  of 
stones,  plants  and,  presumably,  other  substances,  was  a  special 
function  of  the  Semitic  priesthood.  To  Dr.  H.  F.  Lutz,  of  the 
University  of  Pennsylvania,  I  am  indebted  for  the  following 
translation,  from  an  Assyrian  tablet  reproduced  in  Ebeling, 
Keilschrift  Texte  Religiosen  Inhalts  aus  Assur,  No.  44:  "The 
Essentials  of  the  series  of  the  Incantation  Priesthood,  which  are 
laid  down  for  learning  and  inspection: — the  total  of  their  names." 
Amongst  the  enumeration  of  "their  names"  is  "the  preparing  of 

stones:  the  preparing  of  plants;  to  compose  and lists  of 

stones  [and]  lists  of  plants."    This  tablet  is  thought  to  refer  to 
the  priests'  school  at  the  Esagila  temple  in  Babylon. 


92  THE   SHIP   "TYRE" 

the  Babylonian  inscriptions,  and  the  Hindu  naoratna  was  also  of 
nine.  But  if  the  nine  are  correct  for  Babylon,  we  have  an  eight- 
stone  talisman  in  an  Assyrian  inscription,  and  the  Syriac  at  this 
verse  gives  eight  stones.  If  Ezekiel  wrote  correctly,  his  trans- 
lators may  also  be  right  within  their  lights, — the  LXX  for  Jeru- 
salem, and  the  Syriac,  through  some  local  tradition,  for  Nineveh. 

CHERUB:  cf.  the  ark-cover  with  the  cherubim,  Ex.  XXV,  17-18, 
and  the  "chariot"  of  the  cherubim,  1  Chron,  XXIX,  18. 

HAILSTONES:   the  versions   follow   MT.  "stones  of  fire",  a  con- 
densed   expression   clearly   parallel   to   Ps.    XVIII,    13    or    Isa. 
XXX,  30,  "hailstones  and  coals  of  fire";  t?K~^rU1   "111   (W) 
shortened  to  £W">jaK- 
The  line  being  short,  it  has  been  completed  from  Ps.  above. 

STONES  OF  FIRE:  perhaps  a  suggestion  of  the  lightning,  as  a 
manifestation  of  divine  power,  and  conceived  as  encircling  the 
divine  abode.  Cf.  the  Cherubim  with  their  flaming  swords, 
stationed  at  the  garden  of  Eden  to  shut  out  the  man  and  the  woman 
who,  said  the  Lord  God,  are  "become  as  one  of  us,  to  know  good  and 
evil.'*  (Gen.  Ill,  22-24).  The  Cherub  remains  in  this  lamentation, 
but  he  is  placed,  not  at  the  garden,  but  at  the  holy  mountain,  and 
casts  out  Nebuchadrezzar  like  another  Adam.  (So  Cheminant, 
following  Loisy).  Cf.  also,  the  hailstones  and  coals  of  fire  sur- 
rounding the  Lord  in  Psalm  XVIII,  13;  the  brightness  and  coals  of 

~  *       **      f*  "VrXTTT          1   -9 J      ^.l»A      4.Un  .>  .<-1sv.*r»      si  *^  si       Kr>Vi+         *  -f      T? 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  SHIP  93 

monarch  whom  vassal  Tyre  had  enriched,  who  was  about  to  crush 
his  vassal,  and  whose  kingdom  ran  throughout  the  valleys  of  Eu- 
phrates and  Tigris  from  mouth  to  source,  from  the  garden  of  Eden 
to  Ararat  or  Demavend.  Of  Nebuchadrezzar  and  no  other  was 
this  doom  foretold. 

SUBSTITUTION  OF  NAME:  That  such  cryptic  utterances  were 
not  unusual,  and  especially  assumed  of  Ezekiel's  writings,  is  shown 
in  two  passages  from  the  Talmud: 

Whosoever  prieth  into  the  four  things  in  the  matter  of  the 
chariot  in  Ezekiel's  vision — what  is  above,  what  is  beneath, 
what  is  before,  or  what  is  behind — it  were  better  for  him  if  he  had 
never  been  born.  (Chaggigah,  11,  2). 

When  Nero  came  to  the  Holy  Land,  he  tried  his  fortune  by 
belemnomancy  thus: — He  shot  an  arrow  eastward,  and  it  fell 
upon  Jerusalem;  he  discharged  his  shafts  towards  the  four  points 
of  the  compass,  and  every  time  they  fell  upon  Jerusalem.  After 
this  he  met  a  Jewish  boy,  and  said  unto  him,  "Repeat  to  me  the 
text  thou  hast  learned  today."  The  boy  repeated,  "I  will  lay 
my  vengeance  upon  Edom  (i.*.,  Rome)  by  the  hand  of  my 
people  Israel."  (Ezek.  XXV,  14).  Then  said  Nero,  "The  Holy 
One — blessed  be  He! — has  determined  to  destroy  His  Temple 
and  then  avenge  Himself  on  the  agent  by  whom  its  ruin  is 
wrought."  Thereupon  Nero  fled  and  became  a  Jewish  proselyte 
and  Rabbi  Meir  is  of  his  race.  (Gittin,  56,  1). 


94  THE  SHIP   "TYRE" 


VIII 

Babylon  was  taken  in  538  B.C.  by  Cyrus  king 
of  Persia,  who  promptly  released  the  Israelites 
from  captivity.  He  ordered  that  they  be  as- 
sisted in  rebuilding  the  temple,  and  he  returned 
the  sacred  vessels  taken  by  Nebuchadrezzar: 
five  thousand  four  hundred  vessels  of  gold  and 
silver  in  all.1  A  decree  of  Cyrus  quoted  by 
Ezra  directed  the  building  to  be  on  strong 
foundations,  three  rows  of  great  stones  and  a 
row  of  new  timber,  and  that  the  builders  be 
given  what  they  needed  for  the  daily  offerings; 
bullocks,  rams,  lambs,  wheat,  salt,  wine,  and  oil. 
The  temple  was  finished  in  the  reign  of  Darius. 
At  its  dedication  were  offered  a  hundred  bullocks, 
two  hundred  rams,  four  hundred  lambs;  and  for 
a  sin-offering  twelve  he-goats,  one  for  each 
tribe.2 

For  the  maintenance  of  the  temple  service 
taxes  were  levied  by  ordinance;  the  third  of  a 
shekel  for  the  showbread,  meal-offering  and 
burnt-offering,  the  sabbaths,  new  moons,  ap- 
pointed seasons,  and  holy  things,  and  for  the  sin- 
offerings  to  make  atonement.  To  the  priests 
were  ordered  the  firstfruits  of  the  land  and  the 
trees,  of  the  sons  and  the  cattle,  the  herds  and 
the  flocks,  the  wine  and  the  oil.  To  the  Levites, 
the  tithes. 

»Ezra  I,   1-11       2Ezra  VI,   1-18 


THE  SECOND  TEMPLE 95 

For  the  children  of  Israel  and  the  children  of  Levi  shall  bring  the 
heave-offering  of  the  corn,  of  the  wine,  and  of  the  oil,  unto  the 
chambers,  where  are  the  vessels  of  the  sanctuary,  and  the  priests 
that  minister,  and  the  porters,  and  the  singers;  and  we  will  not 
forsake  the  house  of  our  God.3 

At  the  dedication  of  the  wall  of  Jerusalem 
there  were  thanksgivings,  with  singing,  with 
cymbals,  psalteries,  and  with  harps,  and  "with 
the  musical  instruments  of  David  the  man  of 
God."  And  "the  joy  of  Jerusalem  was  heard 
even  afar  off."4 

Thus  far  the  accounts  of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah. 
For  the  second  temple  no  specifications  of  build- 
ing or  equipment,  and  no  details  of  service, 
except  that  it  was  as  5  "appointed  by  the  law," 
or  "written  in  the  book  of  Moses."  The  single 
measurement  of  ninety  cubits  length  in  the  de- 
cree of  Cyrus  differs  from  the  hundred  cubits  of 
Ezekiel's  specifications.6  But  for  the  first 
temple  and  the  tabernacle  minute  details  remain. 
It  is,  perhaps,  not  unreasonable  to  assume  that 
when  the  "heads  of  fathers'  houses  were  written 
in  the  book  of  the  chronicles,"  7some  portions 
of  this  priestly  tradition  were  included  also.8 

»  Neh.  X,  33-40  4  Neh.  XII,  27-43  6  Neh.  XII,  44;  Ezra  VI,  18 
•  Ezra  VI,  3;  Ezek.  XLI,  13-15  *  Neh.  XII,  23 

8  According  to  another  account,  the  second  temple  was  more  mag- 
nificent than  the  first:  (Hag  II,  9)  "The  glory  of  this  latter 
house  shall  be  greater  than  that  of  the  former."  The  Talmud, 
however,  notes  five  things  which  were  in  the  first  temple  which 
were  not  in  the  second:  the  ark  and  its  cover,  with  the  cherubim; 
the  fire;  the  Shechinah  or  visible  presence;  the  Holy  Spirit  of 
prophecy;  and  the  Urim  and  Thummim;  and  a  commentator  sug- 
gests that  they  were  absent  because  they  tended  to  usurp  the 
place  of  the  spiritual,  of  which  they  were  but  the  assurance  and 
symbol.  (Yoma,  21,2) 


96  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 


IX 

Ezekiel  greatly  developed  the  apocalyptic  ele- 
ment in  the  priestly  tradition.  As  the  tribula- 
tions of  the  Israelites  continued  and  the  proph- 
ecies of  their  re-establishment,  prosperity  and 
world  leadership  were  postponed  from  century 
to  century  and  seemed  ever  less  likely  of  accom- 
plishment, there  grew  up  a  large  following  that 
would  translate  these  promises  into  another 
world.1 

In  the  Apocalypse  of  John,  the  method  of 
Ezekiel  is  closely  followed.2  The  very  words 
are  echoes  or  quotations  from  Ezekiel,  Isaiah 
and  Jeremiah.  The  material  substances  men- 
tioned are  those  already  quoted  from  Exodus, 
Numbers,  Judges,  Chronicles  and  Ezekiel,  yet  so 
employed  as  to  present  the  same  vivid  sketch  of 
the  activities  of  a  new,  rich  and  ruthless  world 
power — Imperial  Rome.  We  have  sufficient 
ground  for  dating  the  Apocalypse3  about  93  A.D. 
from  its  mention  not  only  of  the  persecutions 
under  the  emperor  Domitian,  but  of  two  of  his 
decrees  affecting  agriculture  and  viticulture. 
This  was  but  a  few  years  subsequent  to  the  cam- 
paign of  Titus  against  Jerusalem,  70  A.D., 

1  Cf.  Charles,  Apocrypha  and  Pseudepigrapha  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment: also,  Religious  Development  between  the  Old  and  New 
Testaments  (Home  University  Library). 

»  Rev.  XVII,  3-5,  18. 

1  S.  Reinach,  Gultes,  Mythes  et  Religions,  II,  356-380,  from  Rev. 
VI,  6;  but  the  author  was  familiar  with  the  temple  at  Jerusalem 
before  Titus  destroyed  it:  (XI,  1-2). 


=      a 

I'd 

*     <# 

I  ! 

II 


i  i 


X^KBaWPi 


I 


I  s 


J      I" 


2 

7  S. 


THE  GREAT  CITY  "BABYLON"         97 

which  ended  with  the  capture  and  destruction  of 
the  city  and  the  dispersion  of  its  survivors. 
The  Israelites  at  that  time  were  smarting  at  the 
hand  of  Rome,  just  as  in  Ezekiel's  time  they  were 
at  the  hand  of  Babylon.  The  prophecies  of 
destruction,  although  made  by  the  author  of  the 
Apocalypse  in  the  name  of  Babylon,  which  had 
been  dead  for  so  many  centuries  that  its  very 
site  was  almost  forgotten,  referred  surely  to  the 
immediate  oppressor,  who  was  conceived  as 
gathering  within  herself  all  the  sins  and  crimes 
of  which  all  the  earlier  oppressors  of  Israel  had 
been  accused.4 

The  curses  of  the  centuries  are  gathered  to- 
gether, concentrated  and  focused  upon  the  im- 
mediate object  of  the  writer's  wrath — the  city  of 
Imperial  Rome.  We  are  introduced  to  her  as  a 
"woman  sitting  upon  a  scarlet  beast,  arrayed 
in  purple  and  scarlet,  decked  with  precious  stones 
and  pearls,  having  in  her  hand  a  golden  cup  full 
of  abominations."  That  her  real  name  is  not 
the  one  written  we  are  advised  in  the  statement, 
"upon  her  forehead  the  name  written,  Mystery, 
Babylon  The  Great."  The  writer  further  ex- 
plains, "the  woman  which  thou  sawest  is  the 
great  city  which  reigneth  over  the  kings  of  the 
earth."5 

In  this  description  there  are  echoes  not  only 


'It  is  evident  that  the  priestly  tradition  is  followed:  the  Exodus 
passages  are  from  the  P  document:  Ezekiel  himself  a  Zadokite  and 
priest:  and  the  writer  of  the  Apocalypse  had  both  at  his  finger- 
tips. 

•  Rev.  XVII,  3-5,  18 


98 THE   SHIP   "TYRE" 

of  the  faithless  foundling6  and  the  wanton 
sisters  of  Ezekiel,7  but  of  the  daughters  of  Israel 
weeping  over  Saul,8  who  clothed  them  with 
scarlet  and  other  delights,  and  put  ornaments  of 
gold  upon  their  apparel.  The  items  singled  out 
for  descriptions  of  the  adornment  are  merely  the 
high  lights  of  the  adornment  of  the  tabernacle, 
the  golden  vessels  of  which  had  been  dishonored. 
This  description  of  Rome  at  the  height  of  her 
prosperity  is  wonderfully  vivid.  We  seem  even 
to  smell  the  smoke  of  the  great  fire  of  Rome  in 
the  time  of  Nero.9 

MYSTERY  OF  THE  GREAT  CITY  "BABYLON" 

After  these  things  I  saw  another  angel  coming  down  out  of 
heaven,  having  great  authority;  and  the  earth  was  lightened 
with  his  glory. 

And  he  cried  with  a  mighty  voice,  saying,  Fallen,  fallen  is 
Babylon  the  great,  and  is  become  a  habitation  of  devils,  and  a 
hold  of  every  unclean  spirit,  and  a  hold  of  every  unclean  and 
hateful  bird. 

And  I  heard  another  voice  from  heaven,  saying,  Come  forth, 
my  people,  out  of  her,  that  ye  have  no  fellowship  with  her  sins, 
and  that  ye  receive  not  of  her  plagues: 

For  her  sins  have  reached  even  unto  heaven,  and  God  hath 
remembered  her  iniquities. 

And  the  kings  of  the  earth shall  weep  and  wail  over 

her,  when  they  look  upon  the  smoke  of  her  burning 

And  the  merchants  of  the  earth  weep  and  mourn  over  her, 
for  no  man  buyeth  their  merchandise  any  more; 

Merchandise  of  gold,  and  silver,  and  precious  stone,  and 
pearls,  and  fine  linen,  and  purple,  and  silk,  and  scarlet;  and  all 
thyine  wood,  and  every  vessel  of  ivory,  and  every  vessel  made  of 
most  precious  wood,  and  of  brass  and  iron,  and  marble: 

•  Ezek.  XVI,  10-19 

7  Ezek.  XXIII,  5-24 

•  II  Sam.  I,  24 

9  Rev.  XVIII,  1-2,  4-5,  9,  11-12,  13,  15-21 


THE  GREAT  CITY  "BABYLON"         99 

And  cinnamon,  and  spice,  and  incense,  and  ointment,  and 
frankincense,  and  wine,  and  oil,  and  fine  flour,  and  wheat,  and 
cattle,  and  sheep;  and  merchandise  of  horses  and  chariots  and 
slaves;  and  souls  of  men. 

The  merchants  of  these  things,  who  were  made  rich  by  her, 
shall  stand  afar  off  for  the  fear  of  her  torment,  weeping  and 
mourning; 

Saying,  Woe,  woe,  the  great  city,  she  that  was  arrayed  in 
fine  linen  and  purple  and  scarlet,  and  decked  with  gold  and  pre- 
cious stone  and  pearl! 

For  in  one  hour  so  great  riches  is  made  desolate.  And  every 
shipmaster,  and  every  one  that  saileth  any  whither,  and  mari- 
ners, and  as  many  as  gain  their  living  by  sea,  stood  afar  off, 

And  cried  out  as  they  looked  upon  the  smoke  of  her  burn- 
ing, saying,  What  city  is  like  unto  the  great  city? 

And  they  cast  dust  on  their  heads,  and  cried,  weeping  and 
mourning,  saying,  Woe,  woe,  the  great  city,  wherein  were  made 
rich  all  that  had  their  ships  in  the  sea  by  reason  of  her  costliness! 
for  in  one  hour  is  she  made  desolate. 

Rejoice  over  her,  thou  heaven,  and  ye  saints,  and  ye 
apostles,  and  ye  prophets;  for  God  hath  judged  your  judgment  on 
her. 

And  a  strong  angel  took  up  a  stone  as  it  were  a  great  mill- 
stone, and  cast  it  into  the  sea,  saying,  Thus  with  a  mighty  fall 
shall  Babylon,  the  great  city,  be  cast  down,  and  shall  be  found 
no  more  at  all. 

This  list  of  articles  of  trade  might  stand  for  a 
sketch  of  the  commerce  of  Rome,  but  when 
examined  in  detail  it  is  evidently  no  more  than  a 
selection  from  the  tabernacle  and  temple  speci- 
fications,10 with  a  few  changes,  due  to  the  rab- 
binical interpretations  of  Ezekiel.  There  are  the 
familiar  gold  and  silver,  linen,  and  silk  (or,  more 
correctly,  covering  of  goats'  hair),  purple  and 
scarlet  of  the  tabernacle,  and  the  precious  stones 
of  the  breastplate.  Pearls  appear  in  place  of 

w>  Ex.  XXV-XXX:  1  Chron.  XXIX. 


100  THE   SHIP   "TYRE" 

Ezekiel's  "costly  substance"  rendered  as  coral, 
which  replaced  the  "precious  substance"  ren- 
dered as  bdellium,  which  accompanied  the  onyx 
of  the  priests'  shoulder  buckles.11 

"All  thyine  wood"  harks  back  to  the  coni- 
ferous timbers  of  the  temple.  Thyine  wood, 
Thuya,  is  the  arbor  vitae,  a  variety  of  cypress, 
which  was  one  of  the  timbers  commanded  by 
both  David  and  Solomon  for  the  temple  con- 
struction, and  for  musical  instruments.  In  the 
Vulgate  the  doubtful  algum  of  Chronicles  is 
rendered  as  thyine.12 

Ivory  recalls  the  palace;  for  Solomon's  throne 
was  a  "great  throne  of  ivory,  overlaid  with 
finest  gold."13 

"Precious  wood"  may  include  many  things, 
the  sacred  acacia  wood14  of  the  tabernacle,  the 
olive  of  the  temple  interior,15  the  ebony  of 
Ezekiel,16  or  the  foreign  woods  brought  back 
from  Solomon's  voyages.17 

The  brass  and  iron  were  military  equipment, 


11  Benjamin  of  Tudela  has  the  pearls  yielded  by  the  bdellium  (ed. 
Adler,  p.  63),  in  which  he  follows  Saadia  Gaon  in  his  Arabic 
translation  of  the  Bible.  Jewish  authorities  are  divided  as  to 
whether  bdolakh  was  a  jewel  or  a  gum.  To  this  may  be  due  the 
confusion  in  the  legend,  as  between  bdellium,  coral  and  pearl 
(including  nacre  or  mother-of-pearl).  Gen.  II,  11-12:  Ex.  XXVIII, 
6-12:  Ezek.  XXVII,  16:  Rev.  XVIII,  12. 

«  1  Kings  X,  11:  2  Chron.  IX,  10-11 
«  1  Kings  X,  18-20:  2  Chron.  IX,  17-19 
"  Ex.  XXV,  10 
18  1  Kings  VI,  31-35 
18  Ezek.  XXVII,  IS 
17  1  Kings  X,  11 


THE  GREAT  CITY  "BABYLON"        101 

whereof,  after  purification,  the  priests  had  their 
lawful  share.18 

Marble  was  the  stone  quarried  for  Solomon's 
temple.19  Cinnamon,  spices,  incense,  oint- 
ment, and  frankincense20  are  an  echo  of  the  in- 
cense and  anointing  oil  for  the  tabernacle. 
Wine,  cattle,  and  sheep  were  specified  for  the 
various  tabernacle  offerings;21  and  they  were 
among  the  items  subject  to  tithe;  the  cattle  and 
sheep  tithe  might  be  converted  into  wine  at  the 
convenience  of  the  owner.22 

In  the  "oil  and  fine  flour"  we  have  an  echo  of 
the  lamp  of  the  tabernacle,  and  of  the  meal 
offering.23  The  "wheat"  refers  to  the  shew- 
bread.24  It  was  also  a  crop  subject  to  tithe. 

Horses  and  chariots  are  an  echo  of  the  splen- 
dors of  the  army  of  king  Solomon,  considered  so 
remarkable  that  the  annalist  in  Kings  gives  us 
the  price  at  which  they  were  purchased.25 

Slaves  were  an  item  of  the  spoil  of  victory, 
whereof  the  priests  and  Levites  had  their  lawful 
share.26 

"Souls  of  men"  is  the  single  contribution  of 
the  author  of  the  Apocalypse  to  these  traditional 
lists.  In  a  sense  this  distinction  between  a  man's 
body  and  his  soul  may  reflect  the  progress  of 

«  Num.  XXXI,  21-23 

"  1  Chron.  XXIX,  2 

»  Ex.  XXX,  23-25 

«  Ex.  XXIX 

»  Deut.  XIV,  22-29 

»  Ex.  XXVII,  20:  XXIX,  40-41 

24  Ex.  XXV,  30 

»  1  Kings  X,  26-29 

28  Num.  XXXI,  25-30 


THE  SHIP  "TYRE 


human  thought  and  belief  between  the  periods 
of  the  Law  and  of  the  New  Testament.  On  the 
other  hand,  this  passage  affords  an  interesting 
instance  of  the  change  in  the  meaning  of  the 
word  psyche,  which,  in  the  LXX,  both  in  the 
instruction  for  division  of  the  spoil  between 
people  and  priests,  Numbers  3  1,27  and  Eze- 
kiel's  list,28  means  the  "persons  of  men".  The 
author  of  the  Apocalypse  makes  a  distinction, 
and  writes  for  slave  the  word  soma  meaning 
"body,"  while  he  reserves  his  psyche  for  the 
soul.29  In  this  we  may  have  a  reflection  of  the 
worship  of  the  emperor  imposed  upon  her  subjects 


27  Num.  XXXI,  35   ^ux^  bvOp&nrw. 

28  Ezek.  XXVII,  13  ^uxals  bvOpwruv: 

29  Rev.  XVIII,  13  ffwu&TW  leal  \lsvxas 

Cf.  Burton,  Spirit,  Soul,  and  Flesh:  Univ.  of  Chicago  Press,  1918 
Cf.  Zohar,  II,  142:  The  soul  is  a  trinity  of  three  elements, 
HDBO  Neshamah,  the  highest  phase  of  existence;  fill  Ruah, 
the  moral  element,  the  seat  of  good  and  evil;  \y^  Nephesh, 
the  gross  side  of  spirit,  the  vital  element  which  is  en  rapport 
with  the  body.  "In  these  three  we  find  an  exact  image  of 
what  is  above  in  the  celestial  world.  For  all  three  form  only 
one  soul.... The  Nephesh  does  not  in  itself  possess  any  light... 
Above  the  Nephesh  is  the  Ruah,  which  dominates  the  Nephesh, 
imposes  laws  upon  it,  and  enlightens  it  as  much  as  its  nature 
requires.  And  then  high  above  the  Ruah  is  the  Neshamah, 
which  in  turn  rules  the  Ruah  and  sheds  upon  it  the  light  of 
life.  The  Ruah  is  lit  up  by  this  light,  and  depends  entirely 
upon  it.  After  death,  the  Ruah  has  no  rest.  The  gates  of 
Paradise  (Eden)  are  not  opened  to  it  until  the  time  when  the 
Neshamah  has  reascended  to  its  source,  to  the  Ancient  of  the 
ancients,  in  order  to  become  filled  with  Him  throughout 
eternity.  For  the  Neshamah  is  always  climbing  back  again 
towards  its  source." 

— Abelson,  Jewish  Mysticism,  160-161. 


THE  GREAT  CITY  "BABYLON"        103 

by  Imperial  Rome,  wherein  the  city  is  conceived 
as  being  the  mistress  not  only  of  the  bodies, 
but  of  the  souls  of  her  subjects. 

The  "casting  of  the  great  millstone  into  the 
sea  by  a  strong  angel"  to  picture  the  fall  of 
Babylon  is  an  echo  of  the  doom  prophecy  of 
Jeremiah,  which  was  to  have  been  sent  to  Baby- 
lon and  publicly  read,  wrapped  about  a  stone  and 
cast  into  the  Euphrates  to  justify  the  prophecy.30 

Such  are  the  articles  included  in  this  list  of  the 
commerce  of  Rome.  We  cannot  assume  them  to 
have  been  intended  as  a  matter-of-fact  list  of  the 
commerce  of  the  Roman  Empire,  then  the  great- 
est power  in  the  world  with  wealth  greater,  and 
communications  more  distant  and  varied  than 
any  of  the  world's  empires  before  her.  These 
substances  are  merely  a  condensed  selection  from 
the  items  that  figure  in  the  Hebrew  annals  in 
connection  with  tabernacle,  temple,  palace,  or 
priestly  spoil.  Whoever  desires  an  actual  list  of 
the  commerce  of  Rome  need  only  consult  such 
works  as  the  Periplus,  or  the  Natural  History 
of  Pliny,  to  see  the  contrast. 


Jer.  LI,  63-64 


104     '  THE    SHIP    "TYRE" 


There  remains  in  this  excursion  into  the  sym- 
bolism of  commerce  only  to  consider  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  New  Jerusalem  which,  in  the  same 
way,  is  based  upon  material  from  Exodus  and 
Ezekiel. 

We  may  first  recall  the  significance  of  the 
color  blue,  whether  in  stone  or  in  fabric,  as  stand- 
ing for  something  more  than  the  ordinary,  more 
even  than  the  earthly.  In  the  passage  in  Exo- 
dus which  describes  the  ascent  of  Moses  and  the 
elders1  of  Israel  on  Mt.  Sinai,  and  their  vision 
of  the  God  of  Israel,  it  is.  said, 

There  was  under  his  feet  the  like  of  a  paved  work  of  sap- 

pir  stones,  and  the  like  of  the  very  heaven  for  clearness 

and  the  appearance  of  the  glory  of  the  Lord  was  like  devouring 
fire. 

So  in  Ezekiel's  first  vision  which  called  him  to 
his  duty  of  prophecy,2 

1  Ex.  XXIV,  10 

2  Ezek.  1,  26-27 

Hashmal  ^Dt/Tl  'in  this  passage,  AV  amber,  JR  electrum,  is  an  in- 
stance of  the  cryptic  method  of  Ezekiel.  While  it  seems  to 
mean  "shining",  it  is  explained  as  a  condensed  form  of  Hayot 
esh  me-mal-le-loth,  "the  living  creatures  of  fire,  speaking";  and 
a  modern  commentator,  Malbim,  explains  the  Hayot  as  "the 
living  creatures  which  are  the  camp  of  the  Shechinah  (the 
Divine  Presence)  where  there  is  the  'still  small  voice.'  It  is 
they  who  receive  the  Divine  effluence  from  above  and  dissem- 
inate it  to  the  Hayot  who  are  the  movers  of  the  wheels'  of 
Ezekiel's  Chariot."  The  Chariot  was  a  sort  of  'mystic  way* 
leading  up  to  the  final  goal  of  the  soul;  and  the  rider  of  the 
Chariot,  or  Merkabah,  was  he  who  aimed,  while  still  in  the 
flesh,  to  mount  up  to  the  spiritual  world. 

— Abelson,  Jewish  Mysticism,  34-38 


THE  HOLY  CITY  105 

was  the  likeness  of  a  throne,  as  the  appearance  of  a  sap- 

pir  stone and  the  color  of  hashmal  as  the  appearance  of 

fire  round  about  enclosing  it. 

The  tables  of  the  law  brought  down  by  Moses, 
according  to  legend,3  were  engraved  upon  the 
finest  blue  stone  then  known — lapis-lazuli.4 

The  writer  of  the  Apocalypse  gives  a  wider 
range  of  color,  for  he  describes  a  5throne  in 
heaven, 

and  one   sitthig  on  a  thrtm'e;  and  he  that  sat  was  to  look 

upon  like  a  iaspis  stone  and  a  sardios; a  rainbow  round 

about  the  throne  like  smaragdos  to  look  upon.6 

The  description  of  the  Holy  City  is  a  develop- 
ment of  the  brief  prophecy  in  II  Isaiah: 6 


8  Epiphanius  De  XII  Gemmis  5 

4  This  may,  of  course,  be  a  variant  of  the  engraving  of  the  law  on  the 
altar  of  unhewn  stone  (Josh.  VIII,  32) 

6  Rev.  IV,  3.  The  tradition  is  an  ancient  one;  Cf.  Inscription  of 
Ramses  III,  in  the  Medinet  Habu  Temple,  (Breasted,  Ancient 
Records,  IV,  7.) 

"He  made  it  as  (his)  monument  for  his  father,  Amon-Re, 
making  for  him  "The-House-of-Usermare-Meriamon-Possessed-of- 
Eternity-in-the-House-of-Amon,"  like  unto  the  great  palace  of  the 
horizon;  of  fine  sandstone.  The  "Great  Seat"  is  of  gold,  its  pave- 
ment of  silver,  its  doors  of  gold  and  black  granite;  the  broad-hall 
of  stone  of  Ayan,  the  doors  thereof  of  copper  in  beaten  work,  the 
inlay-figures  of  electrum  and  every  splendid  costly  stone.  When 
the  sun  rises,  he  shines  into  its  midst,  his  splendor  envelops  its 
house,  the  favorite  seat  of  (his)  father,  Amon.  When  he  sets, 
he  touches  its  beauty,  silver,  electrum,  and  every  costly  stone " 

•Is.  LIV,  11-12 


106  THE   SHIP   "TYRE" 

O  thou  afflicted,  tossed  with  tempest 

And  not  comforted, 

Behold,  I  will  set  thy  stones  in  fair  colours, 

And  lay  thy  foundations  with  sappir. 

And  I  will  make  thy  pinnacles  of  chodecod, 

And  thy  gates  of  eqedakh,7 

And  all  thy  border  of  precious  stones. 

which  in  turn  is  an  echo  of  Solomon's  temple: 
"and  he  garnished  the  house  with  precious 
stones  for  beauty."8 

In  the  Holy  City  the  names  of  the  twelve 
tribes  that  were  engraved  on  the  stones  of  the 

7  EQEDAKH,  rnpK    from  qadakh  to  kindle;  rendered,  carbuncles. 
The  LXX  has  sappheiros,  iaspis  and  krystallos. 

8  2  Chron.  Ill,  6:  but  the   Vulgate   has  "pretiosissimo   marmore", 

suggesting  the  possibility  that  the  original  stones  of  the  temple, 
were  merely  the  costly  marble  brought  down  with  infinite 
labor  from  Lebanon  or  Anti-Libanus,  translated  by  later  fancy 
into  "precious  marble"  and  finally  into  the  otherwise  rather  im- 
practicable "precious  stones'*  of  the  foundations  of  the  Holy  City. 
The  Talmud,  however,  offers  assurance  of  the  literal  truth  of 
the  precious  stone  foundations:  Rabbi  Yochanan,  in  expound- 
ing Isa.  LIV,  12,  said:  "The  Holy  One— blessed  be  He!— will 
bring  precious  stones  and  pearls,  each  measuring  thirty  cubits  by 
thirty,  and  polishing  them  down  to  twenty  cubits  by  ten,  will  place 
them  in  the  gates  of  Jerusalem."  A  certain  disciple  contemptu- 
ously observed:  "No  one  has  ever  yet  seen  a  precious  stone  as 
large  as  a  small  bird's  egg,  and  is  it  likely  that  such  immense  ones 
as  these  have  any  existence?"  He  happened  one  day  after  this  to 
go  forth  on  a  voyage,  and  there  in  the  sea  he  saw  the  angels 
quarrying  precious  stones  and  pearls  like  those  his  Rabbi  had  told 
him  of,  and  upon  inquiry  he  learned  that  they  were  intended  for 
the  gates  of  Jerusalem.  On  his  return  he  went  straight  to  Rabbi 
Yochanan  and  told  him  what  he  had  seen  and  heard.  "Raca!" 
said  the  latter.  "Hadst  thou  not  seen  them  thou  wouldst  have  kept 
on  deriding  the  words  of  the  wise!"  Then  fixing  his  gaze  intently 
on  him,  he  with  the  glance  of  his  eye  reduced  to  a  heap  of  bones  the 
carcass  of  his  body.  (Bava  Bathra,  75,  1) 


THE  HOLY  CITY  107 

breastplate  are  transferred  to  the  twelve  gates 
of  the  city,9  while  the  foundations  of  the  city, 
carrying  out  Isaiah's  vision,  were  of  twelve  pre- 
cious stones  engraved  with  the  names  of  the 
twelve  apostles.10 

THE  HOLY   CITY 

And  he  carried  me  away  in  the  spirit  to  a  great  and  high 
mountain,  and  shewed  me  that  great  city,  the  holy  city  Jeru- 
salem, coming  down  out  of  heaven  from  God, 

Having  the  glory  of  God:  and  her  light  was  like  unto  a  stone 
most  precious,  as  it  were  a  iaspis  stone,  clear  as  crystal; 

Having  a  wall  great  and  high;  having  twelve  gates,  and  at 
the  gates  twelve  angels;  and  names  written  thereon,  which  are 
the  names  of  the  twelve  tribes  of  the  children  of  Israel: 

On  the  east  three  gates;  and  on  the  north  three  gates;  and  on 
the  south  three  gates;  and  on  the  west  three  gates. 

And  the  wall  of  the  city  had  twelve  foundations,  and  on 
them  twelve  names  of  the  twelve  apostles  of  the  Lamb. 

And  he  that  spake  with  me  had  for  a  measure  a  golden  reed 
to  measure  the  city,  and  the  gates  thereof,  and  the  wall  thereof. 

And  the  city  lieth  foursquare,  and  the  length  thereof  is  as 
great  as  the  breadth:  and  he  measured  the  city  with  the  reed, 
twelve  thousand  furlongs:  the  length  and  the  breadth  and  the 
height  thereof  are  equal. 

And  he  measured  the  wall  thereof,  a  hundred  and  forty  and 
four  cubits,  according  to  the  measure  of  a  man,  that  is,  of  an 
angel. 

And  the  building  of  the  wall  thereof  was  iaspis  and  the  city 
was  pure  gold,  like  unto  pure  glass. 

The  foundations  of  the  wall  of  the  city  were  adorned  with  all 
manner  of  precious  stones.  The  first  foundation  was  iaspis; 
the  second,  sappheiros;  the  third,  karchedonios ;  the  fourth, 
smaragdos. 


•Rev.  XXI,  11 

10  and  following  the   arrangement  of  Ezekiel  in  his  ideal  temple 
(XLVIII,  30-35) 


108  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

The  fifth,  sardonyx;  the  sixth,  sardios;  the  seventh,  chrysoli- 
thos;  the  eighth,  beryllos;  the  ninth,  topazion;  the  tenth,  chryso- 
prasos;  the  eleventh,  hyakinthos;  the  twelfth,  amethystos. 

And  the  twelve  gates  were  twelve  pearls;  each  one  of  the 
several  gates  was  of  one  pearl:  and  the  street  of  the  city  was  pure 
gold,  as  it  were  transparent  glass.11 

The  stones  are  obviously  the  same  as  the  list 
for  the  breastplate.  After  due  correction,  allow- 
ing for  change  in  the  meaning  of  words,  and  with 
some  re-arrangement  in  order,  they  admit  of  the 
same  color  arrangement. 

Curious  indeed  is  the  similarity  of  this  vision 
to  one  of  a  far-distant  religion.12  Kusavati,  the 
Celestial  City  of  the  Hindus,  is  thus  described : — 

"Seven  ramparts  surrounded  Kusavati,  the  materials  being 
respectively  gold,  silver,  beryl,  crystal,  agate,  coral  and  all 
kinds  of  gems.  In  these  ramparts  were  four  gates — one  of  gold, 
one  of  silver,  one  of  crystal  and  one  of  jade — and  at  each  gate 
seven  pillars  were  fixed,  each  three  or  four  times  the  height  of  a 
man  and  composed  of  the  seven  precious  substances  that  con- 
stituted the  ramparts.  Beyond  the  ramparts  were  seven  rows 
of  palm  trees,  the  fourth  row  having  trunks  of  silver  and  leaves  of 
gold;  then  followed  palms  of  beryl,  with  leaves  and  fruit  of  beryl; 
agate  palms,  whose  fruit  and  leaves  were  of  coral,  and  coral 
palms,  with  leaves  and  fruit  of  agate;  lastly,  the  palms  whose 
trunks  were  composed  of  "all  kinds  of  gems"  had  leaves  and 
fruit  of  the  same  description,  "and  when  these  rows  of  palm 
trees  were  shaken  by  the  wind,  arose  a  sound  sweet  and  pleas- 
ant, and  charming  and  intoxicating." 

And  as  early  as  the  Gilgamesh  Epic  we  have  a 
description  of  the  "mystic  cedar  tree",  which 
grew  in  the  Elamite  sanctuary  of  Irnina  under 


11  Rev.  XXI,  10-21 

12  Maha  Sudassana  Suttanta;  Buddhist  Suttas,  tr.   Rhys  Davids, 
S.B.E.  XI 


THE  HOLY  CITY 109 

the  guardianship  of  King  Humbaba,  and  which, 
like  the  oak  Ygdrasil  of  the  Saxons,  joined  heaven 
and  earth:13 

It  produces  samtu-stones  as  fruit; 

Its  boughs  hang  with  them,  glorious  to  behold; 

The  crown  of  it  produces  lapis-lazuli; 

Its  fruit  is  costly  to  gaze  upon. 

and  another  tree  viewed  by  Gilgamesh: 

It  bore  precious  stones  for  fruits; 

Its  branches  were  glorious  to  the  sight; 

The  twigs  were  crystals; 

It  bore  fruit  costly  to  the  sight. 

Also  another  tree  of  Hindu  religion:14 

The  Kalpa  tree  of  Hindu  religion,  a  symbolical  offering 
to  the  gods,  was  a  glowing  mass  of  precious  stones.  Pearls  hung 
from  its  boughs  and  beautiful  emeralds  from  its  shoots;  the  tender 
young  leaves  were  corals,  and  the  ripe  fruit,  rubies.  The  roots 
were  sapphire;  the  base  of  the  trunk,  diamond;  the  upper  trunk, 
cat's  eye,  the  middle  trunk,  topaz.  The  foliage  (except  the 
young  leaves)  zircons. 

The  legend  was  not  unknown  to  the  Greeks. 
Lucian  describes  a  "gem  city":15 

The  city  of  the  Islands  of  the  Blessed.  The  walls  of  this 
city  were  of  emerald,  the  temples  of  the  gods  were  formed  of 
beryl,  and  the  altars  therein  of  single  amethysts  of  enormous 
size.  The  city  itself  was  all  of  gold  as  a  fit  setting  for  these 
marvelous  gems. 


18  Ward,  Seal  Cylinders  of  Western  Asia,  Washington  1910,  pp.  232-4 
14  Surindro  Mohun  Tagore,  Mani  Mala,  Calcutta  1881,  II,  645-7 
16  Vera  Historia  2,  11:  these  are  quoted  from  Kunz.  The  Curious  Lore 
of  Precious  Stones. 


HO THE   SHIP    "TYRE"         

XI 

The  goal  of  our  journey  might  seem  too  simple 
to  justify  the  length  of  the  road,  were  it  not  also 
fundamental.  These  enrichments  of  worship, 
as  Ezekiel  put  it,  were  as  ornaments  to  the  found- 
ling that  she  might  be  made  fair  as  a  bride  for 
the  Master.  When  taken  for  the  adornment  of 
worldly  pride,  they  not  only  lost  their  virtue,  but 
brought  ruin  and  degradation.  Military  power  and 
victory  over  the  enemy  were  likewise  as  gifts  for 
the  uplifting  of  the  victor.  When  applied  to  selfish 
ends  they  brought  swift  doom.  The  imagery  is 
clear  where  in  Ezekiel  these  riches,  taken  by 
Babylon  for  her  own  pride  and  pleasure  and  for 
the  conquest  and  oppression  of  mankind,  were  to 
cause  the  downfall  of  Babylon.  Where,  in  the 
Apocalypse,  the  downfall  of  another  Babylon  is 
described,  the  substances  are  translated  to  heaven 
to  become  a  part  of  the  glory  of  the  Lord. 

Sennacherib  profaned  and  pillaged  the  temple 
and  Nineveh  fell;  Nebuchadrezzar  profaned  and 
pillaged  the  temple  and  Babylon  fell;  Titus  pro- 
faned and  pillaged  the  temple,  and  the  writer 
of  the  Apocalypse  predicted  that  Rome  likewise 
should  fall.  The  prophecy  was  fulfilled,  but  not 
as  the  writer  intended,  for  the  interest  of  the 
Christians  in  Jerusalem  was  transferred  from 
Zion  to  Calvary,  and  the  Rome  that  fell  was  a 
Christian  Rome. 

So  far  as  we  may  point  to  a  moral  in  all  these 
symbolic  pictures  of  commerce,  it  is  that  the 
purpose  of  man  lies  not  in  the  pomp  and  the 
trappings  of  priesthood  and  princedom. 


PRECIOUS  STONES  111 


XII 

When  the  Israelites  were  leaving  Egypt  they 
were  advised  to  despoil  the  Egyptians  by  carry- 
ing away  jewels  of  silver  and  jewels  of  gold.1 
If  the  jewels  were  set  with  stones  they  were 
probably  supposed  to  have  talismanic  virtue, 
based  upon  the  symbolism  of  color.  In  the 
Book  of  the  Dead,  there  are  numerous  texts  to 
be  engraved  on  stones  and  buried  with  the  dead. 
The  Buckle  of  Carnelian,2  to  be  placed  on  the 
neck,  and  which  might  also  consist  of  red  jasper, 
red  porphyry,  red  glass,  or  red  sycomore  wood, 
represented  the  heart  or  the  life-blood,  and  was 
supposed  to  bring  the  protection  of  Isis.  The 
Papyrus  Scepter,3  to  be  engraved  on  emerald 
matrix,  green  feldspar  or  serpentine,  signified 
the  renewal  of  youth  or  continuance  of  life,  like 
the  evergreen  cedar  among  the  trees  of  the 
forest,  or  the  evergreen  mistletoe  on  the  bare 
branches  of  the  oak  in  winter.  The  Pillow4  was 
an  amulet  to  be  made  of  hematite,  and  the  Eye5 
was  to  be  of  lapis  lazuli  ornamented  with  gold. 
A  blue  stone  recalled  the  blue  vault  of  heaven, 


1  Ex.  XII,  35-36.  But  the  Hebrew  is  less  specific:  "things  made  of 
silver  and  things  made  of  gold";  and  the  same  word  is  used  else- 
where for  the  vessels  of  the  temple  (  1^3,  Ezra  I,  7);  DV  has 
"vessels"  in  the  Exodus  passage.  2  Book  of  the  Dead,  156 
» ibid.  159  «  ibid.  166  6  ibid.  140 


112  THE    SHIP    "TYRE" 

and  signified  divinity  or  immortality.6  Egyptian 
priests  frequently  wore  breastplates  of  gold  or 
electrum,  bearing  the  names  or  symbols  of  their 
respective  divinities.7 

The  tabernacle  in  the  desert  was  designed 
under  the  immediate  influence  of  Egypt;  the 
temple  of  Solomon,  under  that  of  Phoenicia;  the 
second  temple,  under  that  of  Chaldea.  The 
first  was  for  nomads;  the  second  for  tillers  of 
the  soil;  the  third  for  city  dwellers.  It  would 
be  no  more  than  natural  if  these  influences  were 
reflected  in  differing  details  of  equipment  or  ser- 
vice. 

In  Egyptian  amulets  and  breastplates,  until 
quite  late,  the  colors  were  relatively  few.  The 
breastplate  identified  the  deity,  and  was  worn 
when  the  priest  sat  in  court  for  judgment. 

If  breastplates  were  worn  by  the  Israelite 
priests,  we  may  suppose  them  to  have  been  of 
burnished  brass  or  gold,  and  to  have  borne  the 
name  or  symbol  of  Jahveh. 

In  the  temple,  and  especially  after  the  sup- 
pression of  the  local  sanctuaries,  the  standing  and 
influence  of  the  priesthood  was  greatly  increased, 
and  their  dress,  no  doubt,  elaborated  and  en- 
riched. In  the  earlier  days  the  priesthood 
was  in  a  more  uncertain  position;  Micah's 


e  Cf.  amulets  presented  by  Ramses  III  to  Amon-Re  (Breasted, 
Ancient  Records,  IV,  319)  "I  made  for  thee  august  amulets  for 
thy  body,  of  fine  Ketem-gold  and  of  silver,  in  beaten  work,  in 
(raised  work)  with  inlay  of  real  lapis  lazuli,  in  order  to  put  them 
upon  thy  limbs  in  thy  'Great  Seat',  and  all  the  gods  of  the  house 
of  Ptah  were  contented  therewith."  7  Cf.  Breasted,  Ancient 
Records,  II,  376,  544,  654;  IV,  201,  231,  285,  319,  etc. 


GREEK  COINS  OF  PHOENICIA 

The  first  three,  of  Sidon  and  Tyre,  from  Gardner's  British  Museum 
Catalogue;  the  fourth,  of  Byblos,  in  the  Cabinet  des  Medailles,  from 
Maspero,  The  Passing  of  the  Empires.  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  publishers 


PRECIOUS  STONES 1J3 

mother,  for  example,  took  silver  to  the  founder 
and  had  a  graven  and  a  molten  image  made  for 
his  house,  and  that  seemed  sufficient  until  a 
Levite  of  the  family  of  Judah  happened  along 
and  they  engaged  him  for  ten  shekels  annually.8 
Hosea  indicates  as  the  essentials  the  sacrifice, 
the  image,  the  ephod,  and  the  teraphim.9 
Elsewhere  the  ephod  and  the  ark  are  named.10 
The  ephod  was  connected  with  the  judgment  by 
lot,  and  the  high  priest  had  no  monopoly  of  it, 
for  it  was  worn  by  Levites,  priests  and  prophets,11 
and  Doeg  the  Edomite  on  a  single  day  slew  four- 
score and  five  of  them.12  David  scandalized  his 
wife  Michal,  daughter  of  Saul,  by  dancing  naked, 
girded  only  with  a  linen  ephod,  on  that  happy 
day  when  he  brought  the  ark  from  the  house  of 
Obed-edom  the  Hittite  to  the  tent  that  he  had 
pitched  for  it  in  Jerusalem,  just  captured  from 
the  Jebusites.13  Both  ark  and  ephod  were  con- 
nected with  the  judgment  by  Urim  and  Thum- 
mim,  whereby  the  Lord  was  consulted  as  to 
everything  of  importance.14  In  later  days  there 
was  much  uncertainty  because  there  stood  up 
no  "priest  with  Urim  and  Thummim."16  When 
Solomon  had  finished  building  the  temple,  he 
made  a  procession  to  bring  to  its  "most  holy 
place"  from  David's  tent,  the  ark  with  its  two 
tables  of  stone.16  There  it  was  installed  with  all 
magnificence;  but  if  we  search  for  a  description 
of  the  dress  and  adornment  of  the  priests  who 

*  Judg.  XVII,  4-13       »  1  Sam.  XIV,  3  13  2  Sam.  VI 

•  Hos.  Ill,  4-5  12  1  Sam.  XXII,  18       «  Num.  XXVII,  21 
»  1  Sam.  XXX,  7;    XIV,  18  «  Neh.  VII,  65 

»  1  Kings  VIII,  1-11 


114  THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 

served  it,  we  find  nothing  in  the  historical  books, 
and  must  refer  to  the  account  of  the  tabernacle 
in  Exodus.  Of  their  appearance  after  Josiah 
had  centralized  the  worship  of  the  whole  nation 
in  their  care,  we  have  not  a  word. 

Ephod  means  "girdle"  and  it  was  of  linen  and 
worn  on  the  person;  but  there  were  ephods  of 
metal17  that  could  stand  on  the  altar,18  and  both 
could  contain  the  Urim  and  Thummim.  The 
word  translated  as  ark  means  no  more  than 
"receptacle",  whether  urn,  chest  or  boat.  Some 
commentators  have  suggested  that  the  ark  was 
the  receptacle  for  the  altar  and  the  ephod  that 
for  the  person;  that  the  ark  held,  when  not  in 
use,  both  the  Urim  and  Thummim  and  the  two 
tables  of  the  Law;  that  it  was  first  called  the 
ark  of  Jahveh  and  subsequently  the  ark  of  the 
covenant;  and  that  the  shining  plate  of  Jahveh 
was  that  which  appears  as  the  mitre-plate,  while 
the  twelve-stone  breastplate  was  a  post-exilic 
development.  Certain  it  is,  that  the  historical 
books  contain  no  reference  to  what  has  since 
become  the  most  distinctive  mark  of  the  Jewish 
priesthood.  Yet  the  tradition  is  positive  for  a 
breastplate  in  the  first  temple,  and  there  is  no 
proof  of  its  absence,  whatever  its  design. 

The  second  temple  lacked  the  ark,  which  had 
been  destroyed,  and  the  Urim  and  Thummim, 
which  had  been  forgotten.  In  its  adornment 
and  equipment  it  was  more  magnificent  than  the 
first.  For  it  there  is  no  reason  to  reject  any 
detail  of  the  glories  described  in  Exodus,  and 
much  reason  to  think  them  compact  of  both 

17  Judg.  VIII,  24-27          18  1  Sam.  XXI,  9 


PRECIOUS  STONES  115 

temples  together.  However  that  may  be,  the 
breastplate  and  shoulder-buckles  of  the  high 
priest  had  become  prominent  features  of  its 
equipment,  and  it  is  to  the  precious  stones  with 
which  they  were  set,  that  our  attention  must  now 
be  directed. 

Babylonian  astrologers  conceived  of  a  path  of 
the  sun  through  the  year,  divided  among  twelve 
constellations,  which  came  to  be  known  as  the 
zodiac;  and  by  observing  the  positions  of  sun, 
moon,  planets  and  constellations  at  the  date  of 
birth,  believed  that  they  could  forecast  the  lives 
of  individuals,  and  through  them  the  fate  of 
nations.  While  there  are  traces  of  this  art  at 
very  early  dates,  scholars  are  agreed  that  it  was 
not  brought  into  anything  like  order  until  the 
late  Assyrian  and  Neo-Babylonian  periods,  and 
not  perfected  until  the  Greeks  came  to  live  in  the 
Euphrates  valley,  in  the  Seleucid  period.19  When 
perfected,  each  constellation  had  its  zodiacal 
sign,  and  its  color,  stone,  plant  and  animal. 
The  wearing  of  a  stone  engraved  with  one's 
zodiacal  birth-sign  was  supposed  to  insure  the 
favorable  influence  of  the  stars,  and  survives  to 
this  day  in  the  lore  of  "natal  stones." 

But  it  would  be  quite  unsafe  to  date  all 
astrological  talismans  after  the  fall  of  Babylon, 
for  there  are  numerous  Assyrian  and  Neo- 
Babylonian  references  to  talismans  of  stones  in 
varying  number;  eight,  nine  and  twelve  all 
appearing.  A  twelve-stone  zodiacal  breastplate, 
with  stones  engraved  with  the  initial  letters  of 
the  zodiacal  signs,  required  only  a  priestly 

19  Cf.  Jastrow,  Encycl.  Brit.,  art.  Astrology. 


116 THE    SHIP   "TYRE" 

adaptation  to  become  the  breastplate  of  the 
second  temple,  with  the  stones  engraved  with 
the  names  of  the  twelve  tribes. 

The  following  Assyrian  incantation-text  gives 
us  an  eight-stone  breastplate:20 

The  splendid  stones!  The  splendid  stones!  The  stones  of 
abundance  and  joy!  Made  resplendent  for  the  flesh  of  the  gods. 
The  hulalini  stone,  the  sirgarru  stone,  the  hulalu  stone,  the 
sandu  stone,  the  uknu  stone.  The  dushu  stone,  the  precious 
stone  elmeshu,  perfect  in  celestial  beauty.  The  stone  of  which 
the  pingu  is  set  in  gold.  Placed  upon  the  shining  breast  of  the 
king  as  an  ornament.  Azagsud,  high  priest  of  Bel,  make  them 
shine,  make  them  sparkle!  Let  the  evil  one  keep  aloof  from 
the  dwelling! 

There  was  commerce  by  sea  between  India 
and  Neo-Babylonia,  from  which  India  received 
enduring  impressions.  It  is  significant  that  the 
ancient  Hindu  naoratna  or  sacred  talisman  was 
a  zodiacal  arrangement  of  nine  stones:21 


Center 

Sun 

Ruby 

East 

Venus 

Diamond 

Southeast 

Moon 

Pearl 

South 

Mars 

Coral 

Southwest 

Rahu 

Jacinth 

West 

Saturn 

Sapphire 

Northeast 

Jupiter 

Topaz 

North 

Descending  node 

Cat's  eye 

Northwest 

Mercury 

Emerald 

20  Fossey,  La   Magie   Assyrienne,   Paris   1902,   p.    301.     Dr.    Kunz 
connects  hulalu  and  hulalini  with  a  root  meaning  "to  perforate", 
and    suggests    pearls.     The    same   meaning   is  possible   for    the 
chodecod  or  chorchor  of  Ezekiel,  as  if  from   kur  to  pierce.      With 
tradition  asserting  redness,  this  may  have  been  coral. 

21  Finot,  Les  Lapidaires  Indiens,  Paris  1896,  p.   175;  quoting  the 
Nararatnapariksha. 


PRECIOUS  STONES  117 

This  gave  a  stone  for  the  earth,  with  one  each 
for  the  four  cardinal  directions,  halved.  The 
same  arrangement  is  found  on  the  Calendar 
Stone  of  the  Aztecs.  Modified,  it  becomes  the 
Christian  symbol  of  the  four  ways  of  the  cross, 
the  four  rays  emerging  therefrom,  and  the  circle 
representing  Him  who  hung  thereon. 

The  breastplate  or  "covering"  of  Ezekiel's 
"King  of  Tyre,"  who  was  Nebuchadrezzar,  was 
also  a  nine-stone  talisman.  It  existed  in 
Babylonia,  probably,  before  the  Hebrew  breast- 
plate was  perfected,  and  may  therefore  be  ac- 
cepted as  it  stands,  notwithstanding  the  LXX 
has  the  list  identical  with  that  in  Exodus.  It 
may  refer  to  an  actual  talisman  of  the  Baby- 
lonian kings. 

Identification  of  the  stones  of  the  breastplate 
has  afforded  interest  to  many  scholars,  and  it 
may  almost  be  said  that  no  two  have  agreed 
upon  the  same  arrangement,  nor  can  such 
agreement  be  hoped  for  until  the  end  of  time. 
For  if  we  follow  the  rabbinical  interpretations, 
we  are  misled  by  late  conjecture,  covering  so 
long  a  period  that  the  same  name  would  be 
differently  applied  to  two  or  more  stones; 
whereas  if  we  translate  literally,  we  have  no 
evidence  at  all.  Of  the  entire  list  one  name  only 
is  of  a  definite  color;  the  rest  are  vague,  or  their 
etymology  unknown.  With  the  color  of  blood, 
then,  we  begin;  and  proceed  to  pale,  flashing, 
sparkling,  beater,  dream-bringer,  Tarshish  stone 
(or,  broken  stone),  nail,  and  shining.  Three 


118  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

more  in  the  breastplate  we  must  leave  un- 
guessed.  For  stones  that  might  apply  to  the 
shoulder-buckles,  we  have  once  more  the  nail, 
one  pierced,-  one  costly  and  one  precious.  Upon 
such  evidence  it  were  idle  to  dogmatize. 

If  we  look  to  the  results  of  archaeology,  as 
shown  in  museum  collections,  we  find  nothing  to 
support  the  lists  as  they  appear  in  the  modern 
versions,  wherein  gems  appear  which  were  un- 
known even  through  the  mediaeval  period.  It 
may  be  as  well  to  begin  with  what  we  know  of 
Egyptian  gems.  Egypt  produced  jasper,  feld- 
spar, transparent  serpentine,  porphyry,  basalt, 
hematite,  chert,  quartz  crystal,  and  emerald 
crystal  (the  last  two  often  confused,  both  being 
hexahedral  and  the  colors  varying).  From  Sinai 
came  the  copper  silicates  and  carbonates;  from 
Arabia  the  various  garnets,  onyx  and  agates  and 
carnelian,  and  from  Syria  likewise;  from  Media 
lazuli,  also  from  Badakshan,  whence  also  tur- 
quoise. From  India  and  Ceylon,  but  not  until 
Graeco-Roman  times,  came  the  beryls,  sapphires, 
topazes  and  zircons,  and  from  Turkestan,  also 
very  late,  jade.  Peridots  were  dug  from  islands 
in  the  Red  Sea,  but  late.  Coral  and  peridots 
appear  in  the  Periplus  as  exports  from  Egypt 
to  India,  but  coral  and  pearl  came  to  Egypt  also 
from  the  Persian  Gulf  and  from  Ceylon.  All 
these  were  late. 

The  gems  of  the  "covering"  in  Ezekiel  were: 
odem,  pitdah,  yahalom;  tars his h,  shoham,  yashe- 
pheh;  sappir,  nophek,  bareketh.  To  these  are 


PRECIOUS  STONES  119 

added  in  Exodus:  leshem,  shebo,  ahlamah.  Their 
equivalents  in  the  LXX  are:  sardios,  topazion, 
onychion;  chrysolithos,  beryllion,  iaspis;  sap- 
pheiros,  anthrax,  smaragdos;  ligurion,  ac hates, 
amethystos.  The  same  stones  appear  in  the 
Apocalypse,  except  that  for  anthrax,  we  have 
karchedonios ;  for  beryl  lion,  beryllos;  for  ligurion, 
hyakinthos;  for  achates,  chrysoprasos ;  and  for 
onychion,  sardonyx. 

Some  commentators  have  attempted  to  classify 
these  lists  according  to  chemical  composition, 
but  this  is  beside  the  point,  for  the  ancients  knew 
nothing  of  chemistry.  Color  is  the  principal 
criterion;  but  if  they  are  crystals,  the  number  of 
faces  is  to  be  considered;  and  notable  character- 
istics, such  as  hardness,  should  not  be  forgotten. 
A  discussion  of  astrological  symbolism  would  lie 
beyond  our  present  objective;  but  it  is  very 
clear  that  the  three  lists  can  be  so  rearranged 
as  to  fall  within  an  almost  identical  color-scheme. 

The  names  of  the  precious  stones  in  the  original 
fall  into  a  sort  of  jingle: — 

Odem,  pitdah  and  bareketh, 
Nophek,  sappir  and  yahalom, 
Leshem,  shebo  and  ahlamah, 
Tarshish,  shoham  and  yashepheh. 

Because  of  the  uncertainty  of  the  translations, 
they  are  presented  herein  in  the  original  for 
better  identification  between  the  passages  in 
which  they  appear.  In  MT  yahalom  and  yashe- 
pheh have  probably  changed  places. 


120 


THE   SHIP   "TYRE" 


THE  STONES    OF  THE   BREASTPLATE  (/) 

"KING  OF  TYRE"  (2)    AND  HOLY  CITY  (3) 

1 

Bareketh 

Pitdah 

Odem 

MT  3  n,ra 

2  mD3 

1  D1K 

Levi 

Simeon 

Reuben 

LXX    3   fffjiap  aydos 

2   TOirc.£iov 

1  aapdiov 

2 

MT  9  np-Q 

2    n~IDS 

1   DTK 

LXX  3   cr/xdpa'/Sos 

9          '  ^ 

1   vapdiov 

3 

N'T  4  <r/xdpa75os 

9    T07Ta£lGV 

6  ffapdiov 

Andrew 

James  the  Less 

Bartholomew 

White  (spectrum) 

Yellow-Green 

Blood-Red 

1 

Yashepheh 

Sappir 

Nophek 

MT  12  nat?' 

s  ^^0 

4   tjQj 

Zebulun 

Issachar 

Judah 

LXX    6    ZtKTTriS 

5   aairpeipos 

4  &vQpa% 

2 

MT  6  fiBBO 

7  -I-.QD 

8  tjgjj 

T  "VAT"     Z*     * 

LiAA  o  ZatrTris 

5  adir<p€tpos 

4  avdpana 

3 

NT  1  tao-Tus 

2  <rd7r^>eipos 

3    Kapxrfovtos 

Peter 

James 

John 

Green  (Deep) 

Blue  (Deep) 

Red  (Deep) 

1 

Ahlamah 

Shebo 

Leshem 

MT  9  no^nK 

8   12  B> 

7  D^ 

Dan 

Benjamin 

Joseph 

LXX  9  djue$u0"ros 

8   dxarT/s 

7  \tyvpiov 

2 

MT        () 

0 

0 

LXX  9  d/ie0uoTos 

8   dxttT^s 

7  \tyvpiov 

3 

NT  12  d/ie#i>(rros 

10  xpuo'OTrpacros 

11   {.d/ct^os 

Paul 

Thaddeus 

Simon  Zelotes 

Purple 

Gray  and  White,  then 

Golden  Brown 

veined  It.  green 

1 

Yahalom 

Shoham 

Tarshish 

MT  6  Q£JV 

11  QHP 

10  t^v^n 

Asher 

Gad 

Naphtali 

LXX  12  bvbxwv 

11  p,ip{,\\iov 

10  xpvcro\i0os 

2 

MT  3  DST 

5  Qnt? 

4  {^"'^Tri 

LXX  12  bvbxwv 

11  f}-rjpv\\iov 

10  xPuo"oXi0os 

3 

NT  S  arapdovvj- 

8  |8i7puXXos 

7  xpVGtih-<-®°* 

Philip 

Thomas 

Matthew 

Flesh-Red 

Blue-Green 

Yellow 

PRECIOUS  STONES 


121 


Our  modern  versions  are  misleading  in  that 
they  assume  the  modern  meaning  for  the  Greek 
original,  and  so  produce  a  breastplate  that  would 
exceed  the  resources  of  many  a  monarch,  and 
would  be  impracticable  as  well,  for  the  gems 
could  not  be  engraved  by  any  tool  known  to  the 
ancients.  We  must  assume  a  stone  large  enough 
to  take  the  name,  soft  enough  to  take  the 
graver's  tool,  and  available  in  the  market  at  the 
time.  The  arrangement  of  Flinders  Petrie  seems 
best  to  meet  these  requirements:22 


Hebrew 

Odem 

Pitdah 

Bareketh 

Nophek 

Sappir 


LXX 

Sardios 

Topazion 

Smaragdos 

Anthrax 

Sappheiros 


Yashephehlaspis 

Leshem       Ligurion 

Shebo 

Ahlamah 

Tarshish 

Shoham 


Achates 

Amethystos 


Early  Late 

Red  jasper  Sard 

Yellow-green  serpentine   Peridot 
Quartz  crystal  Emerald 

Garnet — Carbuncle 

Lapis  lazuli 
Dark  green  jasper 

Yellow  agate 
Agate,  carnelian?  Banded  agate 

Amethj'st 


Chrysolithos  Yellow  jasper  Topaz 

Beryllion         Green  feldspar  Beryl 

Yahalom    Onychion        Onyx?  Onyx 


For  the  doubtful  onyx  of  the  early  arrange- 
ment, corundum  (emery)  and  hematite  both 
suggest  themselves. 

For  the  tarshish  Kunz  makes  the  interesting 
suggestion  of  the  Spanish  smoky  quartz,  which, 
when  heated,  changes  to  a  brilliant  yellow.23  This 
would  tend  to  give  it  a  specific  local  name. 


**  Hastings,  Diet,  of  the  Bible,  art.  Precious  Stones 

»  Kunz,  The  Curious  Lore  of  Precious  Stones,  297-298;  to  Dr.  Kunz 

acknowledgment  is  made  for  numerous   references   used   in  this 

section. 


122  THE    SHIP   "TYRE" 

Returning  to  our  color-scheme,  we  have: 

3  White,  with  2  Yellow-green  1   Blood-Red 

spectrum 

6  Green,  Deep  5  Blue,  Deep  4  Red,  Deep 

9  Purple  8  Gray  and  white          7  Golden  Brown 

12  Flesh-red  11   Blue-green  10  Yellow 

Other  stones  appearing  in  the  Hebrew  are: 

Hebrew  LX  X  Identification 

Bdolakh  Anthrax  Precious:  carbuncle? 

pearl? 

Shoham  '  Prasinos  Sardonyx?  beryl? 

Ramoth  Rhamoth  Costly:  pearl? 

Chodecod  Chorchor,  laspis  Pierced?  Coral?  Pearl? 

Eqedakh  Krystallos  Carbuncle?    Crystal? 

Shamir  Smiris  Emery,  corundum 

Except  as  to  the  last-named  there  is  no  certainty, 
and  the  LXX  renders  shoham  in  Genesis  differ- 
ently from  its  rendering  in  Exodus.24 

The  stones  appearing  first  in  the  Apocalypse 
are: 

Karchedonios  Deep  red  garnet 

(rather  than  chalkedonios) 

Sardonyx  Red  and  white  onyx 

Chrysoprasos  Green  chalcedony 

Hyakinthos  Zircon 

(Our  sapphire  was  included  also 
under  this  name) 

24  The  LXX  in  Gen.  II,  12,  thus  makes  bdolakh  equivalent  to,  or 
possibly  a  scribe's  mistake  for  nophek;  and  supports  the  in- 
ference that  shoham  in  both  breastplate  and  shoulder-buckles, 
was  beryllion,  that  is,  a  hexahedral  crystal. 

Yet  shoham  in  Exodus,  for  the  shoulder-buckles,  is  rendered  by 
the  LXX  as  onychion.  Onyx,  in  Greek,  as  shoham  in  Hebrew, 
means  nail,  or  claw;  or  anything  like  a  nail.  It  includes  the 
white  part  at  the  end  of  rose-leaves»  as  if  their  nail-mark;  a 
part  of  the  liver;  and  a  veined  gem.  This  might  indicate  that 
shoham  could  be  a  double-tinted  crystal. 


PRECIOUS  STONES  123 

Numerous  passages  indicate  that  one  of  the 
stones  was  a  prismatic  crystal  which  refracted 
light  into  the  hues  of  the  rainbow.  Smaragdos, 
beryllos  and  iaspis  are  all  named  in  the  Apocal- 
lypse  as  having  such  properties,  but  Flinders 
Petrie's  selection  of  bareketh,  "flashing",  the 
original  of  smaragdos,  and  his  identification 
thereof  with  quartz  crystal,  are  doubtless  correct; 
as  also  his  explanation  of  the  confusion  of  crystal 
and  emerald,  both  being  hexahedral  and  varying 
in  color.  Pliny  describes  an  eye-glass  made  for 
Nero  of  smaragdos,  which  would  have  been  im- 
possible for  emerald.  A  passage  in  the  Talmud, 
already  quoted,  may  be  taken  as  naming  tarshish 
also,  which  would  be  possible  if  that  was  the 
Spanish  quartz.25 

The  priest's  shoulder-buckles  are  also  to  be 
considered.  They  were  of  shoham,  identified  in 
the  breastplate  with  beryllion,  feldspar  and, 
later,  beryl.  Flinders  Petrie  would  have  them 
to  be  beryls,  and  Patrick  suggests  that  as  each 
stone  bore  the  name  of  six  tribes  and  the  beryl  is 
a  six-sided  prism,  each  face  would  do  for  one 
tribe.  But  if  we  follow  Josephus,  the  buckles 
flashed  like  the  rainbow  stone  on  the  breast- 
plate, that  is,  the  crystal;  and  it  is  the  imperfect, 
or  three-sided  crystal,  that  best  refracts  the  light. 
Josephus,  and  the  name  in  the  text,  may  both  be 
wrong.  Elsewhere  we  read  of  the  shoham  as 
coming  from  Havilah,  that  is,  the  coast  of  the 
Persian  Gulf,  along  with  the  bdolakh,  "precious" 
which  our  versions  render  as  bdellium,  but  the 

«  Note  53,  page  37 


THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 


Arabic  as  pearl.  And  again,  we  have  ramoth, 
"costly",  associated  with  chodecod,  "pierced"  (?) 
in  such  a  way  as  to  suggest  pearl  and  coral.  Now 
the  same  word  in  Arabic  means  both  coral  and 
pearl,  and  in  the  echo  of  this  passage  in  the 
Apocalypse  we  have  the  Greek  margarita,  pearl; 
which  included  both  gem  and  shell.  And  beryls 
were  not  mentioned  as  Arabian  products.  On 
the  other  hand,  onyx,  given  in  our  English 
versions  for  shoham,  was  received  from  Arabia; 
and  sardonyx  answers  for  the  meaning  "nail", 
if  we  refer  to  the  finger-nail,  and  exchanges 
readily  with  coral.26 

Kunz  gives  the  following  arrangement  of  the 
tribal  names  with  their  zodiacal  signs: 

Judah  Aries 

Issachar  Taurus 

Zebulum  Gemini 

Reuben  Cancer 

Simeon  Leo 

Gad  Virgo 

Ephraim  Libra 

Manasseh  Scorpio 

Benjamin  Sagittarius 

Dan  Capricorn 

Naphtali  Aquarius 

Asher  Pisces 


26  Ben  Sira  (Ecclus.  XXIV,  IS)  has  "onyx"  for  the  onycha  of  the 
incense,  and  permits  the  inference  that  this  meant  rose-leaves,  by 
connecting  the  rose  with  the  cedar,  cypress  and  olive  of  the  temple 
(XXIV,  13).  But  it  is  more  probable  that  onycha  was  the 
claw-like  operculum  of  a  mollusc,  still  used  in  Egypt  for 
fumigation.  (Masterman,  in  Hastings,  op.  cit.  769.) 


PRECIOUS  STONES 


125 


Kunz  also  arranges  the  stones  in  their  zodiacal 
order  as  follows: 


Aquarius, 

Jan.  21-Feb.  21 

Garnet 

Pisces, 

Feb.  21-Mar.  21 

Amethyst 

Aries, 

Mar.  21-Apr.  20 

Bloodstone 

Taurus, 

Apr.  20-May  21 

Sapphire 

Gemini, 

May  21-June  21 

Agate 

Cancer, 

June  21-July  22 

Emerald 

Leo, 

July  22-Aug.  22 

Onyx 

Virgo, 

Aug.  22-Sept.  22 

Carnelian 

Libra, 

Sept.  22-Oct.  23 

Chrysolite 

Scorpio, 

Oct.  23-Nov.  21 

Beryl 

Sagittarius, 

Nov.  21-Dec.  21 

Topaz 

Capricorn, 

Dec.  21-Jan.  21 

Ruby 

And  he  quotes  from  a  Jewish  commentary  the 
following  arrangement  of  the  tribal  standards 
in  the  desert:27 


Odem 

Pitdah 

Bareketh 

Nophek 

Sappir 

Yahalom 

Leshem 

Shebo 

Ahlamah 

Tarshish 

Shoham 

Yashepheh 


Red 

Green 

White,  black,  red 

Sky-blue 

Glistening  black 

White 

Sapphire-color 

Gray 

Wine-color 

Pearl-color 

Very  black 

Colors  of  all  the 


Reuben 

Simeon 

Levi 

Judah 

Issachar 

Zebulun 

Dan 

Gad 

Naphtali 

Asher 

Joseph 

Benjamin 


The  children  of  Israel,  we  are  informed,  when 
they  were  encamped  in  the  wilderness,  pitched 
"every  man  by  his  standard,  with  ensigns  ac- 
cording to  their  fathers'  houses."28  This  list  pre- 


27  Midrash  Bemidbar  Rabba,  ed.  Aug.  Wiinsche,  Leipzig  1885,  pp. 

15-16  (a  rabbinical  commentary  on  Numbers) 
«  Num.  II,  2 


126  THE  SHIP   "TYRE" 

serves  the  colors  of  the  breastplate,  albeit  in 
some  confusion,  and  confirms  the  prismatic  hues 
from  one  of  the  stones  by  the  flag  that  had  the 
"colors  of  all  the  stones." 

It  was  the  opinion  of  St.  Augustine29  that  the 
Urim  and  Thummim  were  stones  that  changed 
color  and  so  enabled  the  priest  to  prophesy  good 
or  ill  to  the  congregation.  And  Josephus30  says 
that  the  pectoral  and  onyxes  emitted  a  light, 
as  often  as  God  was  present  at  the  sacrifices. 
This  may  give  some  reason  to  think  that  the 
Urim  and  Thummim  followed  the  same  course 
as  the  stones  of  the  breastplate,  precious  stones 
of  the  same  color  being  substituted,  as  they 
reached  the  market,  for  the  earlier  and  less 
precious  varieties.  Prismatic  crystals  or  chatoy- 
ant gems  might  thus  have  taken  the  place  of 
opaque  pebbles.  But  the  most  satisfactory  ex- 
planation of  the  Urim  and  Thummim  is  that 
which  would  make  them  stones  of  light  and  dark 

29  Opera  Omnia,  Patrologiae  Latinae  ed.  Migne,  III,  1,  637 
80  Ant.  Jud.  3,  8, 9  (37-95  A.  D.)  Cf.  Plutarch,  De  Defectu  Oraculorum 
XLI.  Commentators  have  called  this  passage  "mere  anti- 
quarian conjecture,"  but  it  is  borne  out  by  the  incantation  text 
quoted  by  Fossey,  wherein  the  breastplate  was  worn  by  the 
Assyrian  king,  and  the  glow  was  supposed  to  come  through  the 
high  priest  of  Bel;  whether  by  reflected  light  or  otherwise,  it  would 
be  fruitless  here  to  guess. 

In  Jewish  symbolism,  "the  Crown  contained  within  itself  the 
plan  of  the  universe  in  its  infinity  of  time  and  space,  in  its 
endless  varieties  of  form,  color  and  movement. .  ..The  Crown 
is  ofttimes  styled  the  'White  Head' — 'head'  denoting  the  idea 
of  source,  and  'white*  being  the  blend  of  all  the  colors  (just  as 
the  Crown  is  the  blend  of  all  forms  in  the  cosmos)." 

— Abelson,  Jewish  Mysticism,  147: 

(see  also  p.  49,  note  13;   p.  53,  note  29). 


PRECIOUS  STONES  127 

color;  and  that  the  answer,  yes  or  no,  was  given 
when  the  priest  put  his  hand  into  the  ephod  and 
drew  out  one  or  the  other  from  its  place  of  con- 
cealment.31 The  conjecture  may  be  admissible, 
that  the  saying  in  the  Apocalypse,  "I  am  the 
alpha  and  omega,  the  beginning  and  the  end", 
contains  an  allusion  to  the  Urim  and  Thummim, 
and  suggests  that  Christ  as  judge  of  the  quick 
and  the  dead  assumed  the  oracular  function  of 
the  priesthood.  The  various  versions  give  their 
names  as  "light  and  truth",  or  "light  and  per- 
fection", but  it  would  be  better  to  translate 
"light  and  completion" — that  is,  "dawn  and 
dusk",  "light  and  dark",  whence  it  is  but  a  step 
to  "beginning  and  end",  or,  availing  of  the 
Greek  alphabet,  "alpha  and  omega".32 

Ben  Sira  gives  the  following  description  of  the 
sanctuary: 

He  exalted  Aaron,  a  holy  man  like  unto  him,  even  his 
brother  of  the  tribe  of  Levi.  He  established  for  him  an  ever- 
lasting covenant,  and  gave  him  the  priesthood  of  the  people. 
He  beautified  him  with  comely  ornaments,  and  girded  him 
about  with  a  robe  of  glory.  He  clothed  him  with  the  per- 
fection of  exultation;  and  strengthened  him  with  apparel  of 
honour,  the  linen  breeches,  the  long  robe,  and  the  ephod. 
And  he  compassed  him  with  pomegranates  of  gold,  and  with 
many  bells  round  about,  to  send  forth  a  sound  as  he  went, 
to  make  a  sound  that  might  be  heard  in  the  temple,  for  a 
memorial  to  the  children  of  his  people;  with  a  holy  garment, 
with  gold  and  blue  and  purple,  the  work  of  the  embroiderer; 
with  an  oracle  of  judgment,  even  with  the  Urim  and  Thum- 
mim; with  twisted  scarlet,  the  work  of  the  craftsman;  with 
precious  stones  graven  like  a  signet,  in  a  setting  of  gold,  the 

81  Cams,  Oracle  of  Yahveh,  pp.  12-14 

82  D^TlN  0wrurjuo£  A 


THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 


work  of  the  jeweller,  for  a  memorial  engraved  in  writing, 
after  the  number  of  tribes  of  Israel;  with  a  crown  of  gold 
upon  the  mitre,  having  graven  on  it,  as  on  a  signet,  HOLI- 
NESS, an  ornament  of  honor,  a  work  of  might,  the  desires 
of  the  eyes,  goodly  and  beautiful.38 

Josephus  gives  an  explanation  of  the  symbol- 
ism of  the  sanctuary,  which  seems  composite  of 
both  early  and  late  ideas;  an  earlier  scheme  of 
five  colors  (blue,  purple,  scarlet,  white  and  gold) 
and  a  later  scheme  of  the  zodiac,  which  was  cur- 
rent after  the  Alexandrian  conquests  : 

When  Moses  distinguished  the  tabernacle  into  three  parts, 
and  allowed  two  of  them  to  the  priests,  as  a  place  accessible  and 
common,  he  denoted  the  land  and  the  sea,  for  these  are  accessible 
to  all;  but  when  he  set  apart  the  third  division  for  God,  it  was 
because  heaven  is  inaccessible  to  men.  When  he  ordered 
twelve  loaves  to  be  set  on  the  table,  he  denoted  the  year,  as  dis- 
tinguished into  so  many  months.  When  he  made  the  candle- 
stick of  seventy  parts,  he  secretly  intimated  the  decani,  or 
seventy  divisions  of  the  planets:  and  as  to  the  seven  lamps  upon 
the  candlesticks,  they  referred  to  the  course  of  the  planets,  of 
which  that  is  the  number;  and  for  the  veils,  which  were  composed 
of  four  things,  they  declared  the  four  elements,  for  the  fine  linen 
was  proper  to  signify  the  earth,  because  the  flax  grows  out  of  the 
earth;  the  purple  signified  the  sea,  because  that  color  is  dyed  by 
the  blood  of  a  shell-fish;  the  blue  is  fit  to  signify  the  air;  and  the 
scarlet  will  naturally  be  an  indication  of  fire.  Now  the  vest- 
ment of  the  high-priest  being  made  of  linen,  signified  the  earth; 
the  blue  denoted  the  sky,  being  like  lightning  in  its  pomegranates 
and  in  the  noise  of  its  bells  resembling  thunder;  and  the  ephod 
showed  that  God  had  made  the  universe  of  four  elements;  and 
as  for  the  gold  interwoven,  I  suppose  it  related  to  the  splendor 
by  which  all  things  are  enlightened.  He  also  appointed  the 
breastplate  to  be  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  ephod,  to  resemble 
the  earth,  for  that  has  the  very  middle  place  in  the  universe; 
and  the  girdle  which  encompassed  the  high-priest  round,  signi- 
fied the  ocean,  which  goes  round  about,  and  includes  the  world. 

«Ecclus.  XLV,  6-12 


THE  HIGH   PRIEST'S   BREASTPLATE   AND   EPHOD 

in 


I,   II,  THE    BREASTPLATE   UNFOLDED 

A,  lower  fold;  B,  B,  B,  B,  rings  for  attachment  to  Ephod;  C,  the  twelve 
gems  in  their  settings;  D,  D,  hooks  for  attachment  to  shoulder;  E,  E,  bands  to 
pass  through  rings  in  Ephod. 

III.  EPHOD  WITH  BREASTPLATE  FOLDED  AND  ATTACHED 

G,  G,  rings  through  which  pass  bands  of  Breastplate;  H,  H,  bands  of  Ephod. 
From  Johann  Braun's  Vestitus  Sacerdotum  Hebraeorum,  Amsterdam,  1680. 

Reproduced  from  Kunz,  The  Curious  Lore  of  Precious  Stones.  J.  B.  Lippin- 
cott  Co.,  publishers. 


Compare  Testament  of  Levi,  VIII,  2-3: 

And  I  saw  seven  men  in  white  raiment  saying  unto  us:  Arise, 
put  on  the  robe  of  the  priesthood,  and  the  crown  of  righteous- 
ness, and  the  breastplate  of  understanding,  and  the  garment  of 
truth,  and  the  plate  of  faith,  and  the  turban  of  the  head,  and 
the  ephod  of  prophecy.  And  they  severally  carried  these  things 
and  put  them  on  me,  and  said  unto  me:  From  henceforth 
become  a  priest  of  the  Lord,  thou  and  thy  seed  forever. 


PRECIOUS  STONES 


129 


Each  of  the  sardonyxes  declares  to  us  the  sun  and  the  moon; 
those  I  mean  that  were  in  the  nature  of  buttons  on  the  high- 
priests*  shoulders.  And  for  the  twelve  stones,  whether  we 
understand  by  them  the  months,  or  the  like  number  of  the  signs 
of  that  circle  which  the  Greeks  call  the  Zodiac,  we  shall  not  be 
mistaken  in  their  meaning.  The  mitre,  which  was  of  a  blue 
color,  seems  to  me  to  denote  heaven;  for  how  otherwise  could 
the  name  of  God  be  inscribed  upon  it?  It  was  also  illustrated 
with  a  crown  of  gold,  because  of  that  splendor  with  which  God  is 
pleased.34 

The  gems  considered  in  this  section  may  be 
tabulated  for  convenience  as  follows  :35 


Jasper 

Onyx,  sardonyx 

Agate 

Carnelian 

Chrysoprase 

Chalcedony 

Rock  Crystal 
Amethyst 
Smoky  quartz 
Chert 

rock  flint 
Jade,  hornblende 

Serpentine 
Feldspar 


Garnet,  carbuncle 

hyacinth 
Beryl,  emerald 


Silica 


Silica 


Egypt,  Syria,  Asia 
Minor 

Arabia 

Egypt,  Arabia 

Arabia,  India 

Asia  Minor 

Egypt,  Syria,  Asia 
Minor 

Egypt,  Syria,  Arabia 

Syria 

Spain 

Egypt 


Silicate  of  calcium         Turkestan;  varieties  in 
and  magnesium,  etc.  Egypt 

Silicate  of  magnesium    Egypt 

Silicate  of  aluminum,    Egypt 
with   potassium,   so- 
dium and  calcium 

Silicate  of  iron  and        Egypt,  Syria,  India 
and  aluminum 

Silicate  of  aluminium    Egypt,  India 
and  beryllium 


84  Antiq.  Jud.  iii,  7 

35  Compiled  in  part  from  G.  F.  Herbert  Smith,  Gem  Stones,  London, 
1912 


130  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

Peridot  Silicate  of  magnesium  Egypt 

and  iron 

Topaz  Silicate  of  aluminium   India,  Ceylon 

Chrysocolla  Silicate  of  copper          Sinai 

Malachite  Carbonate  of  copper     Sinai 

Corundum,  Oxide  of  aluminium      Naxos,  India,  Ceylon 

sapphire,  ruby 

Chrysolite,  Aluminate  of  beryl-      India,  Ceylon 

chrysoberyl,  cat's     Hum 
eye 

Lapis  lazuli  Phosphate  of  alumini-  Media,  Badakshan 

um,  with  iron  and 
magnesium 

Turquoise  Phosphate  of  alumini-  Persia 

um,  with  iron  and 

copper 
Hematite  Oxide  of  iron  Egypt,  Arabia,  Nubia, 

Syria,  Asia  Minor 

Obsidian  Volcanic  glass:  quartz  Egypt,  Red  Sea  coast 

and  orthoclase  with 
mica  or  hornblende 


THE  SPECIFICATIONS  COMPARED   131 


XIII 

EZEKIEL 

27,28 

Gold 
Sheba 

Raamah 


EXODUS 

25,26,28,29,30 
NUMBERS  4 
Gold 

Ark 

Table,  vessels 

Curtains 

Boards 

Veil 

Screen 

Ephod 

Breastplate 

Mitre-plate 
Silver  Silver 

Boards  Tarshish 

Veil 

Hangings 

Screen 
Brass  Brass 

Tent  Javan 

Screen  Tubal 

Altar,  vessels,  &c.         Meshech 

Court 


REVELATION 
18,21 

Gold 


Silver 


Brass 


Blue 

Curtains 

Veil 

Screen 

Ephod 

Breastplate 
Purple 

Curtains 

Veil 

Screen 

Ephod 

Breastplate 


Blue 


Isles  of  Elishah 


Purple 

Isles  of  Elishah 
Edom 


Purple 


132  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

Scarlet  Scarlet 

Curtains 

Veil 

Screen 

Ephod 

Breastplate 
Fine  Linen  Fine  Linen  Fine  Linen 

Curtains  Egypt 

Veil  Edom 

Screen 

Hangings 

Ephod 

Breastplate 
Goats'  Hair  Goats  Silk 

Tent  Arabia,  Kedar 

Rams'  skins  dyed  red  Sheepskins 

Covering  of  tent  Damascus 

Seal  skins 

Outer  covering 
Acacia  wood 

Ark 

Table 

Boards 

Altar 
Shewbread  Cakes:  honey 

Judah,  Israel 

GENESIS  2 
Shoulder  pieces 


Bdolakh 

Ramoth 

Pearl 

Shoham 

Chodecod 

Edom 

Precious  stones: 

Precious 

stones: 

Precious  stones: 

Odem 

Odem 

Sardios 

Sardios 

Pitdah 

Pitdah 

Topazion 

Topaiion 

Bareketh 

Bareketh 

Smaragdos 

Smaragdos 

Nophek 

Nophek 

Anthrax 

Karchedonios 

Sappir 

Sappir 

Sappheiros 

Sappheiros 

Yashepheh 

Yashepheh 

laspis 

laspis 

Leshem 

* 

Ligurion 

Hyakinthos 

Shebo 

* 

Achates 

Chrysoprasos 

Ahlamah 

* 

Amethystos 

Amethystos 

THE  SPECIFICATIONS  COMPARED    133 


Tarshish                Tarshish                Chrysolithos           Chrysolithos 
Shoham                 Shoham                  Beryllion                Beryllos 

Yahalom               Yahalom               Onychion               Sardonyx 

Urim  and  Thummim 

laspis  stone 

most  precious 

Bullocks 

Cattle 

Offering 

Rams 

Rams 

Offering 

Arabia,  Kedar 

Lambs 

Lambs                             Sheep 

Offering 

Arabia,  Kedar 

Oil  (olive) 

Oil                                    Oil 

Light 

Judah,  Israel 

Offering 

Anointing  oil 

Fine  wheat  flour 

Wheat                            Wheat,  Fine  flour 

Offering 

Judah,  Israel 

Wine 

Wine  of  Helbon             Wine 

Offering 

Damascus 

Myrrh 

Anointing  oil 

Incense 

Cinnamon 

Anointing  oil 

Calamus 

Calamus                          Ointment 

Anointing  oil 

Uzal 

Cassia 

Cassia 

Anointing  oil 

Uzal 

Storax 

Spices                              Spice 

Incense 

Sheba,  Raamah 

Onycha 

Incense 

Incense 

Galbanum 

Storax,  balm 

Incense 

Judah,  Israel 

Frankincense 

Incense 

/  CHRON.  29 

(Temple) 

Iron 

Iron                                Iron 

Uzal 


Marble 


Marble 


134 


THE  SHIP  "TYRE 


Cedar 

Cedar 

Thyine  wood 

Lebanon 

Cypress 

Cypress 

Senir 

Olive  wood 

Thyine  wood 

Precious  wood 

Kittim 

Vessels 

Ivory 

Vessels 


Ivory 
Ebony 

Dedan 
Gorgeous  Fabrics 

Haran,  Canneh,  Eden 
Shield  and  Helmet 

Persia,  Lud,  Put 
Horses  Horses 

Togarmah 
Mules 

Togarmah 


1  KINGS  10 

(Palace) 
Ivory 
Ebony 

Throne 
Raiment 

Armor 
Horses 

Mules 

(Purification) 

NUMBERS  31 
Gold 
Silver 
Brass 

Iron  Iron 

Tin  Tin 

Lead  Lead 

(Spoil  Division)  Tarshish 

NUMBERS  31 
Persons  Persons  of  men  Slaves 

Javan,  Tubal,  Meshech     Souls  of  men 
Beeves  Cattle 

Asses  Beasts  of  burden 

Dedan 
Sheep 

(Army  of  Solomon) 

/  KINGS  10 

Chariots  Chariots 

Horsemen  Horsemen 

Togarmah 


DATE  OF  THE  TRADITION  135 


XIV 

The  interpretation  herein  suggested  leads  to 
inquiry  concerning  the  date  of  the  passages  con- 
sidered. Modern  criticism  has  established  the 
existence  of  separate  elements  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. The  Mosaic,  the  Deuteronomic  and  the 
Levitical  laws  reflect  different  epochs  in  the 
history  of  Israel;  the  Jahvist,  the  Elohist  and  the 
Priestly  writers  restate  that  history  from  differ- 
ent points  of  view  and  with  different  objects. 
There  has  been  a  tendency  to  regard  the  P 
document  as  lacking  in  authority  because  it  is 
post-exilic  in  its  final  form.  But  it  would  be 
nearer  the  facts  of  history  to  regard  it  as  resting 
upon  a  traditional  basis  that  antedates  the  other 
documents  as  the  sanctuaries  of  Israel  antedated 
the  kings;  as  containing  a  discussion  of  the 
course  of  royalty  from  the  priestly  standpoint; 
and  as  going  on  with  the  national  record  after 
the  kingdom  had  fallen  and  when  the  priesthood 
was  the  only  remaining  native  authority.  We 
must  expect  to  find  in  such  a  document  very 
early  and  very  late  matter  in  a  sort  of  stratifica- 
tion. But,  as  Driver  observes,  "the  laws  of  P, 
even  when  they  included  later  elements,  were 
still  referred  to  Moses — no  doubt  because  in  its 
basis  and  origin  Hebrew  legislation  was  actually 
derived  from  him,  and  was  only  modified 
gradually."1 

As  ceremonial  changes  less  readily  than  law, 
so  we  may  assume  that  the  ceremonial  element 

1  Introduction  to  the  Literature  of  the  Old  Testament,  154. 


136 THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

in  the  P  document  contains  a  large  share  of  the 
early  tradition;  and  that  it  will  yield,  upon 
examination  of  its  details,  useful  results. 

While  the  priestly  tradition  has  been  presented 
herein  purposely  in  its  order  of  appearance  in 
the  traditional  text,  the  true  order  of  events 
becomes  clear  by  beginning  with  Ezekiel  and 
working  backward.  For  with  him  the  con- 
tinuity of  service  at  the  sanctuary  is  broken, 
and  the  thoughts  of  the  captive  are  directed  to  a 
study  of  the  past  with  a  view  to  correcting  its 
errors  in  the  future.  This  means  that  the  past 
is  spread  out  in  review,  albeit  in  idealized  form; 
its  glories  magnified  and  its  crudities  forgotten. 

To  arrive  at  a  date  for  this  remarkably  con- 
sistent tradition,  three  alternatives  may  be  con- 
sidered. The  political  cryptogram  may  be 
wholly  post-exilic,  of  the  time  of  Darius  or  one 
of  the  Seleucidae;  the  politics  may  be  of  the  time 
of  Nebuchadrezzar  and  the  commercial  details 
a  later  interpolation  for  another  purpose;  or  the 
text  may  be  as  Ezekiel  wrote  it,  in  the  reign  of 
Nebuchadrezzar.  Were  it  necessary  to  accept 
all  the  rabbinical  interpretations  of  the  names 
of  commercial  substances,  which  have  found 
their  way  into  our  modern  versions,  there  would 
be  grounds  for  bringing  the  whole  story  down  to 
the  Seleucid  period.  But  it  is  not  necessary,  for 
the  interpreters  have  missed  many  allusions  and 
their  conclusions  are  not  sound.  The  theory  of  a 
series  of  interpolations  in  the  text  of  Ezekiel  is 
not  easily  maintained.  What  would  become  of 
the  stories  of  the  foundling  and  the  sisters,  with- 
out the  details  of  their  adornment  borrowed  from 


DATE  OF  THE  TRADITION  137 

the  lost  glories  of  Israel?  But  if  we  retain  the 
details,  we  must  admit  their  allusions  to  the 
past.  We  conclude,  therefore,  that  the  text  is 
historical,  and  remarkably  free  from  extraneous 
matter.  The  political  cryptogram  fits  the  inter- 
national situation  for  the  oppressive  Chaldean 
empire;  but  for  the  tolerant  Persian,  not  at  all. 
We  have  seen  how,  in  Ezekiel's  parable  of 
Jerusalem  the  foundling,  the  original  reference 
to  the  fabrics  of  the  sanctuary  was  lost  by 
rabbinical  interpretation  that  remembered  the 
wanton  but  forgot  that  she  personified  the  city.2 
The  same  process  may  be  observed  in  a  similar 
passage  in  Isaiah.  In  his  third  chapter3  the 
prophet  describes  the  humiliation  to  come  upon 
Jerusalem  for  her  unfaithfulness : 

Because  the  daughters  of  Zion  are  haughty, 

And  walk  with  stretched-forth  necks 

And  wanton  eyes, 

Walking  and  mincing  as  they  go, 

And  making  a  tinkling  with  their  feet; 

and  he  tells  how  all  her  finery  shall  be  torn  from 
her,  "and  utterly  bereft  she  shall  sit  upon  the 
ground."  He  lists  the  finery  in  full  detail  of 
feminine  jewels  and  apparel,  closing  with  a 
phrase  rendered  from  MT  as  "the  gauze  robes, 
and  the  fine  linen,  and  the  turbans,  and  the 
mantles."  But  if  we  turn  to  the  same  passage 
in  the  LXX,  we  must  translate  "the  fine  linen, 
and  the  blue,  and  the  scarlet,  and  the  linen  with 
gold  and  blue  interwoven";  and  by  the  sub- 

»  See  note,  "Silk,"  pp.  53-54      «  Isa.  Ill,  23      For  bell-ringing  to 
ward  off  evil  spirits,  cf.  Frazer,  The  Magic  Art,  ii,  343-344. 


138_ THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

stitution  of  a  single  word  in  the  Greek,4  we 
obtain  "the  purple,  and  the  blue,  and  the  scarlet, 
and  the  linen  with  gold  and  blue  interwoven", 
clearly  an  allusion  to  the  fabrics  of  the  sanctuary. 
This  enables  us  to  infer  when  the  allusion  was 
lost.  Corruption  of  the  text,  begun  in  the  LXX, 
has  proceeded  so  far  in  MT  as  to  miss  the  point 
of  the  story,  and  late  interpretation  has  con- 
cerned itself  with  a  living,  not  a  symbolic  wan- 
ton. Isaiah  was  concerned  about  political  mis- 
fortune to  befall  his  people.  His  interpreters, 
centuries  later,  had  eyes  alone  for  his  picture  of  a 
frail  woman;  whose  feet  tinkled  from  the  bells  of 
the  priest's  robes. 

But  this  was  the  real  Isaiah,  and  the  text,  if 
correctly  restored,  carries  us  back  into  pre- 
exilic  times,  and  well  before  the  Deuteronomic 
reform.  It  is  an  allusion  to  the  temple  of  Solo- 
mon. And  Ezekiel,  a  century  later,  uses  the 
same  symbol. 

The  substances  mentioned  by  Ezekiel,  if  con- 
sidered in  the  text  rather  than  the  interpreta- 
tions, are  all  such  as  entered  into  the  commerce 
of  his  time.  With  few  exceptions,  they  had 
appeared  for  centuries  in  the  markets  of  Baby- 
lonia and  Egypt.  They  were  no  new  enrich- 
ments made  available  to  the  sanctuary  by  the 
discovery  of  new  markets.  The  lists  in  the 
earlier  books  agree  with  those  of  Ezekiel  in  all 
essentials.  Where  they  disagree,  they  contain 
later  matter,  in  connection  with  equipment  that 
may  be  ascribed  to  archaistic  revival  rather  than 

'  Troptpvpa  for  0vaa<.va. 


DATE  OF  THE  TRADITION  139 

original  specification.  Where  Ezekiel  has  cassia 
and  calamus,  the  Priestly  writer  in  Exodus  calls 
for  cassia,  calamus  and  sweet  cinnamon;  but 
these  were  for  the  anointing  oil,  which  kept  on 
gathering  new  ingredients,  if  we  take  the  word 
of  Josephus;  and  it  could  change,  if  we  follow 
Ben  Sira,  who  combines  cinnamon  with  aspala- 
thus.  Where  Ezekiel  has  a  nine-stone  breast- 
plate, Exodus  has  a  twelve-stone  arrangement. 
Without  asserting  the  correctness  of  Ezekiel's 
text,  it  is  significant  that  the  Exodus  list  con- 
tains one  stone  which,  perhaps,  did  not  reach  the 
Egyptian  market  until  considerably  later — the 
golden  stone  of  Tarshish.  "Perhaps"  is  said 
advisedly,  for  the  "tarshish"  stone  may  have 
been  a  "broken"  crystal,  for  producing  prismatic 
rays.  But  the  breastplate,  in  its  final  form,  is 
relatively  late.  Breastplates  there  were  in  abun- 
dance in  the  temples  of  Egypt,  but  nothing  so 
elaborate  as  this,  which  seems  reminiscent  of 
the  astrology  of  Chaldea. 

Of  the  sanctuaries  of  Israel  we  have  descrip- 
tions in  reverse  order.  Of  the  second  temple  we 
are  told  only  that  it  was  finer  than  the  first;  of 
the  first  we  are  given  the  materials  but  few  mea- 
surements; of  the  tabernacle  we  have  materials 
and  measurements  to  the  minutest  detail.  The 
exact  opposite  is  what  we  should  expect,  were 
the  accounts  historical.  But  for  Ezekiel's  ideal 
temple  we  have  careful  measurements,  and  an 
emphasis  laid  upon  the  inner  sanctuary  which 
the  builders  of  the  first  temple  had  not  ob- 
served. For  the  rebuilding  after  the  exile 
Ezekiel  and  his  followers,  from  Haggai  and 


140  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

Zechariah  to  Ezra  and  Nehemiah,  sought  the 
sanction  of  history  in  an  idealized  tabernacle. 
The  descriptions  were  added  to  the  earlier  books 
rather  than  to  those  of  their  own  time.  The 
tabernacle  of  Exodus  XXVI-XXX  is  a  very 
different  thing  from  that  of  Exodus  XXXIII, 
which  must  be  regarded  as  the  fact,  as  the  other 
is  the  ideal  of  a  later  age.  But  the  idealized 
description  is  not  without  value,  for  it  translates 
into  portable  form  the  structure  and  equipment 
of  Solomon's  temple,  even  to  its  brazen  altar, 
curiously  inappropriate  in  the  tabernacle.5 

The  real  "tabernacle  of  dwelling"  in  the  desert 
was  pitched  apart  from  the  camp,  with  Joshua 
as  its  sole  and  non-Levitical  attendant.6  Within 
it  was  the  ark  of  the  Lord.  There  were,  prob- 
ably, the  high  place,  pillar  and  stock,  and  the 
table  for  the  presence-bread  and  incense;  the 
oracle,  the  ephod  and  the  Urim  and  Thummim. 
Thither  every  one  that  sought  the  Lord  might 
go,  to  make  his  offering,  of  cereal  and  drink, 
which  he  shared  with  the  Lord;  to  bring  his 
sacrifices;  to  consult  the  oracle  and  receive  judg- 
ment. There  were  such  sanctuaries  in  every 
town  of  Israel,  and  for  their  service  the  Levites 


5  Cf.  Kennedy  in  Hastings,   Diet,  of  the  Bible,    arts.    Tabernacle, 
Temple,  High  Place,  Sacrifice,  etc. 

•Ex.  XXXIII,  11. 

And,  assuming  that  manifestations  were  in  fact  produced,  it 
was  an  adequate  container  of  psychic  force,  with  its  curtains  of 
fine  white  linen,  hangings  of  dark  goat's  hair,  covering  of  rams' 
skins  dyed  red,  and  outer  covering  of  dark  sealskins,  impervi- 
ous to  light,  wind  and  moisture.  Cf.  Luke  IX,  33. 


DATE  OF  THE  TRADITION  141 

were  set  apart.  The  temple  of  Solomon  at 
Jerusalem  was  the  greatest  of  the  sanctuaries, 
but  not  for  centuries  did  it  supplant  the  rest. 
Then  came  the  reform  that  abolished  all  the 
other  high  places,  centralized  the  worship  of 
Israel  in  the  temple,  reduced  the  Levites  to 
minor  service,  raised  up  the  priestly  guild  and 
set  the  sanctuary  apart  from  the  people.  The 
captivity  followed  soon  after;  and  Ezekiel,  him- 
self a  hereditary  member  of  the  priestly  guild, 
devoted  that  time  of  trial  to  a  study  of  the 
ancient  institutions,  to  determine  wherein  they 
had  so  fallen  short  of  the  divine  ideal  as  to  bring 
down  upon  Israel  the  divine  wrath.  In  the 
words  of  Kennedy,  "we  are  dealing,  not  with 
historical  fact,  but  with  the  product  of  religious 
idealism;  and  surely  these  devout  idealists  of  the 
Exile  should  command  our  admiration  as  they 
deserve  our  gratitude.  If  the  Tabernacle  is  an 
ideal,  it  is  truly  an  ideal  worthy  of  Him  for  whose 
worship  it  seeks  to  provide.  Nor  must  it  be 
forgotten,  that  in  reproducing  in  portable  form, 
as  they  unquestionably  do,  the  several  parts  and 
appointments  of  the  Temple  of  Solomon,  includ- 
ing even  its  brazen  altar,  the  author  or  authors  of 
the  Tabernacle  believed,  in  all  good  faith,  that 
they  were  reproducing  the  essential  features  of 
the  Mosaic  sanctuary,  of  which  the  Temple  was 
supposed  to  be  the  replica  and  the  legitimate 
successor."7  And  who  shall  say,  as  all  things 
made  on  earth  are  but  imperfect  forms  of  a 
greater  Idea,  that  these  successive  sanctuaries 


7  Kennedy,  in  Hastings,  op.  cit.  8SS. 


142  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

are  not  the  developing  manifestations  of  a  "house 
not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens"?8 

The  point  of  interest  in  Ezekiel's  allegories  is 
that  they  contain  the  materials  of  the  pre-exilic 
worship,  with  such  allusions  as  to  prove  that 
they  were  matters  of  common  knowledge.  They 
indicate  also  that  the  idealizing  of  the  earlier 
worship  was  in  the  way  of  dignity,  ornateness 
and  size,  rather  than  essentials  of  sanctuary  and 
sacrifice.  While  the  ideal  Tabernacle,  with  its 
improbable  dimensions,  its  central  position  in  an 
encampment  of  impossible  extent,  and  its  array 
of  priests  and  Levites  guarding  the  sanctuary 
from  the  people,  is  beyond  acceptance  as  histori- 
cal, yet  the  materials  themselves  are  such  as  the 
followers  of  Moses  might  have  been  expected  to 
put  into  their  "tabernacle  of  dwelling"  and  their 
descendants  to  translate,  with  a  minimum  of 
necessary  change  in  the  enlargement,  into  per- 
manent form  in  the  temple  of  Solomon. 

These  materials  were  known  to  the  whole 
people,  and  there  could  have  been  no  violent 
break  between  the  old  and  the  new;  for  the 
second  temple  was  seen  by  "old  men  that  had 
seen  the  first  house  standing  on  its  foundations", 
and  they  "wept  with  a  loud  voice,  when  this 
house  was  before  their  eyes;  and  many  shouted 
aloud  for  joy."9  Although  there  were  many  of 


8  As  the  Talmud  puts  it,  "Seven  things  were  formed  before  the 
creation  of  the  world:  The  Law,  Repentance,  Paradise, 
Gehenna,  the  Throne  of  Glory,  the  Temple,  and  the  name 
of  the  Messiah."  P'sachim,  54,  1 

"Ezra  III,  12 


. DATE  OF  THE  TRADITION  143 

the  younger  generation,  when  the  Law  was  read, 
to  whom  the  Levites  were  obliged  to  give  the 
sense,  that  they  might  "understand  the  reading",10 
there  were  enough  of  the  older  generation  pres- 
ent to  insure  the  essential  continuity  of  the 
tradition.11  The  Priestly  editor,  it  is  true,  brings 
new  emphasis  to  ceremonial  institutions;  but  it 
does  not  follow  that  they  are  all  post-exilic. 
Their  elaboration  is  progressive  and  even  late, 
but  their  origin,  in  many  instances,  is  of  high 
antiquity.12 

How  faithfully  the  tradition  was  preserved 
may  be  seen  in  a  late  text  like  that  of  Ben  Sira : 

I  was  exalted  like  a  cedar  on  Lebanon, 

And  as  a  cypress  tree  on  the  mountains  of  Hermon; 
I  was  exalted  like  a  palm  tree  on  the  seashore, 

And  as  rose  plants  in  Jericho, 

And  as  a  fair  olive  tree  in  the  plain; 

And  I  was  exalted  as  a  plane  tree. 

As  cinnamon  and  aspalathus, 
I  have  given  a  scent  of  perfumes; 

And  as  choice  myrrh, 
I  spread  abroad  a  pleasant  odour; 

As  galbanum,  and  onyx,  and  stacte, 

And  as  the  fume  of  frankincense  in  the  tabernacle.11 

The  ignorance  and  primitive  character  of  the 
Hebrews  of  the  Exodus,  and  their  subsequent 
isolation  from  the  thought  and  action  of  their 
neighbors,  have  been  over-emphasized  in  modern 

10  Neh.  VIII,  8:  1. 1.  they  had  not  been  taught  Hebrew. 

11  Cf.  Edghill  in  Hastings,  op.  «'*.,  art.  Law,  8:  The  Priestly  Code. 

12  Cf.  Harper,  The  Work  of  the  Old  Testament  Priests. 
«  Ecclus.  XXIV,  13-15 


144  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 

criticism.  Civilization  and  sacred  ceremonial  had 
reached  an  advanced  stage  in  Egypt  before  the 
sojourn  of  the  Hebrews  in  that  land.  The 
sacrifices  and  offerings  of  Ramses  III,  of  the 
Twentieth  Dynasty,  are  preserved  in  the  Papy- 
rus Harris,  now  in  the  British  Museum.  The 
English  version  fills  120  printed  pages;  exceed- 
ing in  length  any  similar  list  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, and  including  a  greater  variety  of  treas- 
ured substances.  This  document  dates  from 
the  12th  century  B.  C.14  Nineteenth  Dynasty 
temples,  covering  the  period  of  the  Hebrew 
exodus,  display  sculptured  hieroglyphic  records 
including  practically  every  substance  mentioned 
in  the  Old  Testament  ritual.15  Eighteenth 
Dynasty  temples  give  records  of  the  15th  cen- 
tury B.  C.,16  telling  of  Punt  expeditions  which 
were  on  a  larger  scale  and  brought  back  a 
greater  variety  of  treasured  cargo  than  the 
Ophir  voyages  ascribed  to  Solomon  in  the  10th 
century  B.  C.  There  are  hieroglyphic  records 
of  Punt  expeditions  as  early  as  the  Fifth  Dynasty, 
28th  century  B.  C.17 

The  Hebrews  had  been  in  personal  contact 
with  Egyptian  civilization  and  ceremonial.18 
The  records  of  their  own  ceremonial  specify  al- 
most nothing  which  had  not  been  reduced  to 

14  Breasted,  Ancient  Records  of  Egypt,  IV,  151-412 

15  Ibid.,  Ill,  251-617 

16  Ibid.,  II,  246-295 

17  Ibid.,  I,  161 

18  Cf.  Naville,  The  Store  City  of  Pithom  (Egypt  Exploration  Fund) 
and  Ex.  I,  11 


DATE  OF  THE  TRADITION  145 

writing  in  Egypt  before  their  departure.  There 
is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  Ezekiel,  using  materials 
of  the  ceremonial  to  cloak  a  prophecy  of  doom 
upon  an  oppressor,  selected  them  from  a  tradi- 
tion wherewith  his  people  were  fully  acquainted. 
Priests  came  before  kings.19  The  oracle,  the 
service  and  the  annals  of  the  sanctuary  preceded 
the  law  and  the  prophets.  Man  consults  his 
gods  before  he  codifies  their  decrees. 


19  Cf.  Gilmore,  Animism,  XV. 


146  THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 


APPENDIX 

Hashmal  and  Theios:  A  suggested  interpretation 

In  the  sixth  century  B.  C.  the  Jews  were  being  held  in  Babylonia 
as  conquered  captives,  and  Ezekiel  was  assuring  them  of  the  restora- 
tion of  their  independence  and  the  downfall  of  their  oppressor  before 
the  wrath  of  God.  This  he  had  to  do  in  language  not  easily  under- 
stood by  Babylonian  officers.  In  his  first  chapter  he  describes  the 
"living  creatures"  about  the  Throne  of  Heaven,  whose  voices  sounded 
like  "an  army  of  horsemen",  and  whose  interest  in  the  Jewish  cap- 
tives was  doubtless  set  forth  more  at  length  in  secret  sessions;  for, 
according  to  the  Talmud,  that  chapter  was  not  to  be  read  until  a  man 
had  attained  to  years  of  discretion,  nor  its  meaning  divulged.  The 
purpose,  we  may  be  sure,  was  the  restoration  of  the  kingdom. 

The  "living  creatures"  appeared  from  whirlwind,  cloud,  fire,  and  a 
brightness  like  "amber";  they  were  ranged  around  a  Throne,  as  of 
"sapphire",  with  the  color  of  "amber"  and  fire  round  about.  In  the 
Hebrew  these  three  "appearances"  are  sappir,  esh  and  hashmal. 
This  hashmal  is  a  word  not  elsewhere  found;  it  seems  to  have  some 
connection  with  a  root  meaning  "to  shine",  but  Jewish  commentators 
explain  it  as  an  anagram  or  artificial  word,  made  from  several, 
hayot  esh  mcmallcloth,  "the  living  creatures  of  fire,  speaking";  and 
this  in  turn  is  said  to  be  the  "abode  of  the  Shechinah  (Divine  Pres- 
ence) where  there  is  the  still  small  voice".  Hashmal  has  the  tradi- 
tional surface  meaning  of  "golden",  and  is  rendered  in  AV  "amber**, 
RV  "electrum".  In  the  Septuagint  the  three  "appearances"  are 
rendered  sappheiros,  pyr  and  elektron.  Here  the  translators  did  not 
go  below  the  surface  for  their  equivalent  to  hashmal. 

In  the  first  century  A.  D.  the  Jews  had  been  almost  annihilated 
and  their  Temple  again  destroyed,  this  time  by  the  Romans,  and  an 
obscure  Jewish  sect  was  denying  the  authority  of  the  Roman  Em- 
peror as  representative  of  divinity  on  earth,  commanding  the  worship 
of  his  subjects.  The  Romans  held  this  doctrine  seditious;  but  it 
spread,  and  its  supporters  proclaimed  the  fall  of  their  oppressor  be- 
fore the  wrath  of  God.  They  had  to  do  this  in  language  not  easily 
understood  by  Roman  officers;  and  the  art  of  the  detective  had 
progressed  since  Babylonian  days.  One  of  their  first  books  to  em- 
body this  political  prophecy  was  written  largely  in  the  words  of 
Ezekiel;  it  was  entitled  The  Apocalypse  of  John.  In  the  fourth 
chapter  the  Throne  reappears,  with  the  four  "living  creatures"; 
and  in  the  ninth  chapter  four  angels,  leading  an  "army  of  horsemen" 
to  the  destruction  of  the  "third  part  of  men".  These  warriors  wore 


APPENDIX  147 


breastplates  of  fire  and  "hyacinth"  and  "brimstone";  so  AV  and  RV. 
In  the  Greek,  pyrinous,  hyakinthinous  and  theiodeis.  These  are 
descriptive  adjectives,  and  our  English  versions  omit  the  word  'ap- 
pearance' which  they  contain,  and  which  the  Greek  carries  down 
from  the  text  of  Ezekiel.  Underlying  the  adjectives  are  the  nouns 
pyr,  hyakinthos  and  theion.  Pyr  is  the  same  as  esh;  hyakinthos 
stands  for  sappir,  both  being  blue;  there  remains  theion,  'brimstone', 
representing  hashm al.  So  far  as  color  goes  it  may  do  so,  for  sulphur 
is  golden  yellow,  like  amber  or  electrum;  but  it  too  avoids  the  con- 
cealed meaning  of  hashmal.  Here,  however,  while  holding  to  the 
color,  the  Seer  of  Patmos  has  found  a  way  to  express  his  political 
message;  for  theion  is  also  the  accusative  of  the  adjective  theios 
meaning  'divine'  or  'miraculous',  which  very  well  represents  hashmal. 

The  four  angels  and  their  army  of  horsemen  are  to  destroy  the 
'third  part  of  men',  that  is,  Rome.  The  remaining  two-thirds  may 
be  understood  as  the  other  world  powers  of  that  day,  Parthia  and 
Armenia,  or  possibly  India.  The  horsemen  wear  the  breastplate  of 
divine  power  and  approval,  theios.  Who  are  they?  Here  appears 
a  coincidence  so  remarkable  that  it  is  hard  to  think  it  accidental. 
Greek  letters  were  used  instead  of  numerals,  which  were  not  yet 
invented,  and  numerical  codes  were  frequently  used  to  embody  and 
preserve  teaching  in  many  lines.  There  is  reason  to  think  that  such 
codes  were  in  use  by  the  early  Christians  especially.  Later,  they 
passed  into  the  philosophical  fancies  of  the  Gnostics  and  were  swept 
aside;  but  in  the  first  century  they  were  a  political  necessity,  lesous 
was  888  and  Nero  6661;  and  Roman  officers  understood  the  signifi- 
cance well  enough  to  destroy  the  Christian  books  as  seditious. 
Bearing  in  mind,  therefore,  that  hashmal  was  the  Voice  of  the  In- 
effable  actuating  the  warriors  of  heaven  who  were  to  overcome  the 
power  of  evil  at  Babylon  and  that  theios  was  the  word  chosen  to 
represent  it  as  against  the  power  of  evil  at  Rome,  we  find  that 
theios  is  equivalent  numerically  to  294,  and  that  294  is  also  the 
equivalent  of  ekklesia.  That  is,  the  Church  of  Christ  was  to  des- 
troy the  Romans,  whose  hands  were  still  red  with  the  blood  of  the 
slaughtered  hosts  in  Palestine.  The  avenging  army,  sent  forth  from 
the  Divine  Presence,  was  the  Church  Militant;  and  the  Christians 
on  earth  were  to  share  the  fruits  of  victory.  Such  interpretation 
seems,  at  any  rate,  to  meet  the  conditions  of  the  time. 

Ezekiel  and  John  spread  their  messages  despite  the  spies  of  the 
autocrat.  When  the  autocrat  himself  became  the  patron  of  the 
Church,  cryptic  utterance  was  no  longer  necessary,  and  its  rules  and 
devices  were  forgotten.  But  it  is  to  these  very  devices  that  we  owe 
most  of  the  "commercial  chapters"  of  Scripture. 


Cf.  Bond  and  Lea,  The  Greek  Cabala,  Oxford  1917;  The  Apostolic 
Gnosis,  1919;  Begley,  Biblia  Cabalistica. 


The  following  abbreviations  are  used: 

MT,  Masoretic  Text 
LXX,  Septuagint 
Vulg.,  Vulgate 
DV,  Douay  Version 
AV,  Authorized  Version 
RV,  Revised  Version 

JR,   Jewish    Revision   (Jewish    Publication   Society   of 
America,  1917). 

Bertholet,  Das  Buch  Hesekiel  (Kurzer  Hand-Comment 

tar  z.  A.  T.)  Leipzig  1897 
Kraetzschmar,   Das  Buch   Ezechiel   (Hand-kommentar 

z.  A.  T.)  Gottingen  1900 
Chemihant,    Les    Propheties     d'Ezechiel     centre    Tyr, 

Paris  1912 

JRAS,  Journal  of  the  Royal  Asiatic  Society 
JAOS,  Journal  of  the  American  Oriental  Society 


INDEX 


149 


INDEX 


Acacia,  10, 11, 12, 13, 100,132 

Achates,  119,  120,  121,  132 

Agate,  108,  118,  121,  125,  129 

Age,  65,  69,  89 

Ahlamah,  119,  120,  121,  125,  132 

Alashia,  78 

Algum  trees,  26,  27,  75,  100 

Almug  trees,  26 

Aloe,  27,  87 

Altar,  11,  13,  17,  18,  19,  44,  77, 

81,  87,  105,  109,  114,  131, 

132,  140,  141 
Amber,  104,  146,  147 
Amethyst,  109,  121,  125,  129 
Amethystos,  108,  119,  120,  121, 

132 

Amulets,  111,  112 
Anthrax,  119,  120,  121,  122,  132 
Antioch,  47,  59,  88 
Apes,  25,  29,31,87 
Arabia,  21,  22,  23,  24,  30,  34,  36, 

38,42,60,63,79,82,  85,86, 

88,  118,  129,  130,  132,  133 
Ararat,  91,  93 
Ark,  10, 17,  60,  77,  88,  89,  92,  95, 

113,  114,  131,  132,  140 
Armenia,  81 
Armlets,    14 
Armor,  arms,  19,  40,  56,  60,  80, 

84,  134 

Army,  20,  21,  60,  101 
Arvad,  62,  78 
Asia  Minor,  129,  130 
Aspalathus,  85,  139,  143 
Asses,  14,  15,  134 
Asshur,  41,  42,  58 
Assyria,  22,  39,  43,  44,  47,  55,  57, 

58 
Awning,  54,  62,  82 

Babylon,  36,  39,  40,  41,  42,  44, 
45,  46,  47,  48,  55,  56,  57,  58, 
59,  69,  79,  81,  85,  87,  89,  91, 
92,  93,  94,  97,  99,  103,  110, 


Babylonia,  22,  43,  44,  45,  47,  58, 

59,  69,  88,  116,  117,  1«38 
Badakshan,  21,  118,  130 
Badger  skins,  11 

Bahrein,  35,  36 

Balikh,  88 

Balm,  22,  63,  83,  133 

Bareketh,  63,  68,  118,  119,  120, 

121,  123,  125,  132 
Barley,  18,  19,  82 
Basalt,  118 

Bashan,  61,  74 
Basra,  35 
Bazu  (Buz),  79 
Bdellium,  23,  80,  100,  123 
Bdolakh,  22,  23,   100,  122,  123, 

132 

Beasts  of  burden,  60,  63,  86,  134 
Beer,  20 
Beeves,  14,  134 
Bells,  12,  127,  128,  138 
Beryl,  108,  118,  121,  122,  123, 

124,  125,  129 
Beryllion,    119,    120,    121,    122, 

123,  133 

Beryllos,  108,  119,  120,  123,  133 
Bloodstone,  125 
Blue,  10,  11,  12,  19,  62,  63,  77, 

88,  127,  128,  129,  131,  137, 

138 

Boards,  11,  74..  131,  132 
Boxwood,  75 
Bozrah,  69 
Bracelets,  14,  53 
Brass,  10,  11,  12,  13,  14,  16,  17, 

19,  44,  62,  80,  81,  98,  100, 

112,  131,  134,  140,  141 
Bread,  13,  20,  55,  140 
Breastplate    (covering),    10,    12, 

60,  68,  82,  87,  99,  107,  108, 
112,  114,  115,  116,  117,118, 

122,  123,  126,  131,  132,  139 
Brimstone,  147 

Bronze,  45,  80 
Budaa,  (Putaa),  79 


750 


THE   SHIP    "TYRE 


Bullocks,  13,  20,  94,  133 
Byblos,  78 

Cakes,  13,  55,  63,  83,  132 
Calamus,  13,  63,  85,  133,  139 
Calves,  20 
Camels,  16,  23,  86 
Candlestick,  11,  17,  19,  128 
Canneh,  63,  88,  134 
Caravan-routes,  35,  86,  87,  88 
Carbuncle,  121,  122,  129 
Carnelian,  111,  118, 121, 125, 129 
Carthage,  57,  78 
Cassia,  13,  63,  84,  85,  133,  139 
Cat's  eye,  109,  116,  130 
Cattle,  99,  101,  133,  134 
Cavalry,  20,  60,  81 
Cedar,  18,  19,  27,  28,  29,  45,  56, 

61,  63,  74,  75,  82,  88,   89, 

108,  111,  124,  134,  143 
Ceylon,  21,  87,  118,  130 
Chains,  16,  53 
Chalcedony,  122,  129 
Chaldea,  38,  43,  55,  56,  57,  58, 

59,  112,  139 
Chalkedonios,  122 
Chariot,  17,  20,  56,  81, 92, 93, 99, 

101,  104,  134 
Chebar,  47,  50,  59,  81 
Chequer  work,  12,  53 
Chert,  118,  129 

Cherubim,  10,17,18,68, 91, 92, 95 
Chest,  60,  63,  88 
Chilmad,  63,  88 
China,  26,  27,  83 
Chios,  81 
Chodecod  (chorchor)  63. 82,  106, 

122,  124,  132 
Chrysoberyl,  130 
Chrysocolla,  130 
Chrysolite,  125,  130 
Chrysolithos,  108,  119,  120,  121, 

133 
Chrysoprasos,  108, 119, 120, 122, 

129 

Cilicia,  76,  80 
Cinnamon,  13,  25,  84,  85,  87,  99, 

101,  133,  139,  143 
Cinnamon  wood,  25 
Colonia  Agrippina,  31 
Conifers,  classification  of,  76 


Copper,  20,  25,  80,  105,  118 
Coral,  23,  80,  82,  87,  100,  108, 

109,  116,  118,  122,  124 
Cords,  63,  89 
Corundum,  121,  122,  130 
Costly  stones,  15, 18, 19,  45, 105, 
Costly  substance,  100 
Cotton,  52 

Covering,  11,  53,  60,  84,  132 
Covering  (outer),  11,  51,  53,  132 
Cow,  14,  20 

Crimson  (see  Scarlet),  19 
Crown,  53,  126,  128,  129 
Cryptic  utterance, 

political  necessity  of,  47,  48, 

91,93 
Ezekiel's  method  of,  57-60,  92- 

93 
applied  to  Nero  in  the  Talmud, 

93 
Crystal,  107,  108,  109,  118,  121, 

122,  123,  129,  139 
Curtains,  11,  54,  86,  131,  132 
Cush,  30,  79,  87 
Cypress,  18,  27,  28,  29,  61,  63, 

74,  75,  82,  88,  89,  100,  124, 

134,  143 
Cyprus,  75,  76,  78 

Damascus,  41,  46,  63,  80,  82,  83, 

132,  133 

Damsels  (See  Persons),  15 
Deck,  62 

Dedan,  62,  63,  75,  76,  82,  86,  134 
Demavend,  39,  91,  93 
Devoted  substances,  14,  15,  48, 

53 

Diamond,  109,  116 
Dogs,  25,  87 
Doors,  18 

Draft-horses,  62,  81 
Dumah,  42 
Dushu  stone,  116 

Ear-rings,  14,  16,  53 

Ebony,  25,  28,  31,  34,  38,  63,  82, 

87,  100,  134 
Eden,  63,  88,  92,  93,  134 

and  the  mountain,  68,  90,  91 
Edom,  26,  46,  47,  63,  82,  86,  87, 

93,  131,  132 


INDEX 


151 


Egypt,  20,  22,  23,  34,  36,  38,  39, 
42,  45,  46,  47,  55,  61,  75,  76, 
79,  81,  85,  112,  118,  124, 
129,  130,  132,  138,  139,  144 

Elam,  41,  58 

Electrum,  104, 105, 112, 146, 147 

Elishah,  62,  78,  131 

Ellutu  wood,  87 

Elmeshu  stone,  116 

Eloth,  26 

Embroidery,  15,  77,  88,  127,  137, 
138 

Emerald,  109,  111,  116,  118,  121, 
123,  125,  129 

Emery,  121,  122 

Ensign,  61,  77,  125 

Ephesus,  81 

Ephod,  10,  12,  16,  113,  114,  127, 
128,  131,  132,  140 

Eqedakh,  106,  122 

Ethiopia,  30,  47 

Euphrates,  23,  36,  41,  46,  50,  57, 
87,  88,  93,  103 

Exchangers,  62,  64,  78 

Eye  cosmetic,  25 

Eye-paint,  87 

Ezion-Geber,  26,  35,  36 

Feldspar,  111,  118,  121,  123,  129 
Fine  fabrics,  gorgeous  fabrics,  19, 

63,  88,  134 
Fire,  14,  16,  46,  55, 68,  69, 92, 95, 

98,  104,  105,  128,  146,  147 
Firstfruits,  14,  55,  83,  94 
Flint,  129 
Floors,  18 

Flour,  54,  99,  101,  133 
Flowers,  18 
Foundations,  106,  107 
Fowl,  25 
Frankincense,  13,  25,  87,  99, 101, 

133,  143 

Galbanum,  13,  133,  143 

Gammadim,  62,  80 

Garments,  14,  15,  16,  19,  25,  51, 

53,  54,  55,  56,  87,  88,  127, 

134 

Garnet,  118,  121,  122,  125,  129 
Gates,  107,  108 
Gazelle,  20 


Gebal,  62,  78 

Geese,  20 

Gerrha,  38 

Gifts,  19,  20,  21,  86 

Gilead,  22 

Girdle,  12,  13,  14,  56,  128 

Glass,  107,  111 

Goats,  14,  63,  86,  94,  132 

Goats'  hair,  10, 11, 14,  51,  52,  53, 
54,  86,  99,  132,  140 

Gold,  10,  11,  12,  13,  14,  15,  16, 
17, 18, 19,  20,  21,  22,  24,  25, 
26,29,34,38,40,42,45,51, 
52,53,55,63,66,68,75,86, 
87,  88,  97,  98,  99,  100,  105, 
107,108,  109,111,112,116, 
127,128,  129,  131,  134,137, 
138 

Golden  Chersonese,  24,  37 

Granite,  105 

Groves,  61,  75 

Gulf  of  Aden,  34,  36,  79 

Hailstones,  68,  92 
Hangings,  12,  57,  131,  132 
Haran,  63,  69,  88,  134 
Hashmal,  104,  105,  146,  147 
Havilah,  22,  23,  123 
Hazor,  46 
Helbon,  63,  83,  133 
Helech,  62,  80 

Hematite,  111,  118,  121,  130 
Hermon,  143 
Hewn  stone,  18,  29 
Honey,  54,  55,  63,  83,  132 
,Hooks,  11,  12,80 
Horn  of  Africa,  21,  85 
Hornblende,  129 
Horsemen,  20,  56,  81,134,146,147 
Horses,  19,  20,  56, 62,  81, 99, 101, 

134 

Hulalini  stone,  116 
Hulalu  stone,  116 
Hull,  sides,  59,  61 
Hyakinthos,  108,  119,  120,  122, 

132, 147 
Hyacinth,  129,  147 

laspis,  105,  106,  107,  119,  120, 
121,  122,  123,  132,  133 


152 


THE  SHIP  "TYRE" 


Incense,  10,  13,  19,  21,  23,  25, 

38,  55,  60,  83,  86,  87,  99, 

101,  124,  133,  140 
Incense  trees,  25,  29,  87 
India,  21,  24,  27,  28,  31,  34,  36, 

38,84,85,87,  116,  118,129, 

130 
Iron,  14,  16,  17,  62,  63,  80,  84, 

98,  100,  133,  134 
Ivory,  19,  25,  29,  31,  34,  38,  60, 

61,62,74,75,76,82,87,98, 

100,  134 

ackals,  33,  43 

acinth,  116 

ade,  108,  118,  129 

asper,  111,  118,  121 

avan,  62,  80,81,  84,  131,  134 

ebel    Shammar    (goldfield),   35, 

79,  84,  86 

Jerusalem,  20,  35,  39,  44,  45,  46, 
47,  48,  49,  50,  56,  57,  87,  89, 
92,  95,  96,  106,  110,  137 
Jevan,  63,  84,  87 
Jewels,  14,  55,  56,  60,  111 

Kadi,  85 

Karchedonios,  107, 119,  120,  122, 

132 

Kasu,  84 
Katan,  23 

Kedar,  46,  63,  86,  132,  133 
Keveh,  20 
Khesyt  wood,  25 
Kition,  76 
Kittim,  61,  76,  134 
Krystallos,  106,  122 
Kyphi,  85 

Lacing,  13,  89 

Ladanum,  22 

Lambs,  13,  63,  86,  94,  133 

Lamps,  11,  12,  17,  19,  83,  101, 

128 

Land  of  traffic,  55,  56 
Lapis-lazuli,    15,   25,    105,    109, 

111,  112,  118,  121,  130 
Larch,  75 
Laver,  13,  19 
Lead,  14,  16,  62,  81,  134 


Lebanon,  18,  27,  29,  56,  61,  74, 

82,  134,  143 

House  of  the  forest  of,  79 
Leshem,  119,  120,  121,  125,  132 
Libya,  33 
Lign  aloes,  27 

Ligurion,  119,  120,  121,  132 
Linen,  10,  11,  12,  13,  19,  25,  51, 

53,  54,  61,  76,  77,  98,  99, 

113,  114,  127,  128,  132,  137, 

138,  140 
Lions,  19 
Liquidambar,  26 
Lower  Sea,  45 
Lud,  30,  62,  78,  79,  134 
Lydia,  79 

Maidens  (See  Persons),  16,  60,  81 

Malabar,  21 

Malachite,  15,  25,  130 

Malmistras,  8'0 

Mantle,  15,  54,  63,  84,  88 

Marble,  17,  29,  82,  98,  101,  106, 

133 

Mast,  59,  61,  74 
Medes,  42,  43,  58 
Media,  21,  118,  130 
Mehalleb,  62,  78 
Men  of  war,  62,  64,  79 
Meshech,  62,  81,  131,  134 
Minnith,  63,  82 
Mistletoe,  111 
Mitre,  12,  13,  89,  128,  129 
Mitre-lacing,  13,  89 
Mitre-plate,  13,  60,  90,  114,  131 
Moab,  41,  46,  47 
Molten  Sea,  19,  44,  81 
Monkeys,  25,  29,  32,  34,  87 
Mount  of  meeting,  43 
Mountain  of  dwelling,  91 
Mountain    of    the    north,    holy 

mountain,  39,  45,  68,  91 
Mountains,  products  of,  45 
Mugheir,  28 

Mules,  19,  62,  81,  86,  134 
Musical  instruments,  26,  28,  95, 

100 

Muza,  35,  86 
Myrrh,  13,  24,  25,  83,  87,  133. 

143 
Myrrh  trees,  25 


INDEX 


153 


Naoratna,  92,  116 
Natal  stones,  115 
Natives  (See  Persons),  25,  87 
•Naxos,  130 
Nebuchadrezzar,  inscription  of, 

45 
Nineveh,  39,  42,  43,  44,  58,  78, 

92,  110 
Nizir,  91 
Nophek,  63,  68,  82,   118,   119, 

120,  121,  122,  125,  132 
Nubia,  19,  33,  34,  35,  75,  76,  82, 

84,  87,  130 

Oak,  61,  74,  109,  111 

Oars,  59,  61 

Obsidian,  130 

Odem,   62,   118,   119,   120,   121, 

125,  132 
Offerings,  13,  48,  51,  55,  83,  94, 

95,  101,  133,  140 
Atonement-offering,  14 
Burnt-offering,  13,  60,  83,  94 
Consecration-offering,  13 
Drink-offering,  13,  55,  60,  83 
Meal-offering,  13,  55,  60,  83, 

94,  101 

Sin-offering,  60,  86,  94 
Oil  (anointing)  10,  13,  40,  51,  60, 

83,  84,  85,  101,  133,  139 
Oil  (olive),  10,  12,  13,  14,  18,  51, 

54,55,63,82,83,94,99,101, 

133 

Ointment,  Parthian,  85 
Ointment,  99,  101,  133 
Olive-wood,  18,  100,  124,  134, 

143 

Onycha,  13,  124,  133,  143 
Onychion,   119,    120,    121,    122, 

133 
Onyx,   100,   118,  121,  122,  124, 

125,  129,  143 
Ophir,  17,  21,  22,  24,  26,  29,  30, 

31,34,36,37,38,79,82,87, 

144 

Oracle,  75,  127,  140,  145 
Ornaments,  16,  51,  53,  55,  98, 

127,  128 
Oryx,  20 

Ostriches,  32,  33,  34,  43 
Oxen,  15,  19,  20 


Palace,  19,  20,  38,  40,  70,  100, 

103,  105,  134 
Palestine,  9,  19,  22,  23,  26,  34, 

38,83 

Palm-trees  JL8,  45,  108,  143 
Panther  skins,  25,  87 
Parvaim,  22,  87 
Paths,  26,  28 
Peacocks,  29,  31,  32,  34 
Pearl,  23,  80,  82,  87,  97,  98,  99, 

100,  106,  108,  109,  116,  118, 

122,  124,  132 
Peridot,  118,  121,  130 

Persia,  41,  62,  78,  79, 94, 130, 134 

Persian  Gulf,  22,  26,  28,  30,  36, 
38,41,  57,  78,  87,  118,  123 

Persons,  14,  62,  81,  102,  134 

Philistia,  41,  46,  47,  83 

Phoenicia,  18,57,60,76,  112 

Pillars,  11,  12,  19,  26,  28,  59,  80, 
81,  108 

Pine,  27,  75 

Pitdah,  68,  118,  119,  120,  121, 
125,  132 

Pithom,  33 

Plane-tree,  143 

Planks  (See  Boards),  59,  61,  74 

Porphyry,  111,  118 

Prasinos,  122 

Precious  stones,  12,  15,  17,  19,  21, 
23,  24,  25,  26,  45,  63,  68,  82, 
87,  91,  97,  98,  99,  106,  107, 
108,  109,  126,  127,  129,  132 

Precious  substance,  100,  108 

Precious  wood,  98,  100,  134 

Prismatic    refraction    in    stones, 

123,  126,  139 
Pul,  30 

Punt,  23,  24,  25,  29,  31,  32,  34, 

36,  79,  87,  144 
Purple,  10,  11,  12,16,19,62,77, 

88,97,98,99,127,128,131, 

138 

Put,  30,  62,  78,  79,  134 
Putaa,  79 

Raamah,  63,  86,  131,  133 
Ramoth,  63,  82,  122,  124,  132 

Rhamoth,  122 
Rams,  13,  63,  86,  94,  133 


154 


THE   SHIP    "TYRE" 


Rams'  skins,  10,  11,  53,  84,  132, 

140 
Red  Sea,  26,  30,  33,  34,  35,  36, 

78,  82,  118,  130 
Rhinoceros  horn,  82 
Robe,  12,  51,  57,  60,  88,  127,  138 
Rome,  48,  93,  96,  97,  98,  99,  103, 

110 

Rose,  124,  143 
Rose-wood,  28 
Ruby,  109,  116,  125,  130 

Sabaeans,  38,  86 

Sacrifice,  13,  86,  126 

Saddle-cloths,  86 

Saddle-horses,  62,  81 

Sahar,  63,  84 

Sail,  52,  54,  59,  61,  82 

Sak  el  Farwain,  22,  87 

Salt,  94 

Samaria,  49,  56,  57 

Samos,  81 

Samtu-stones,  109 

Sanaa,  35,  84 

Sanctuary,  69,  92,  95,  128,  136, 

138,  139,  141,  145 
Sand-dwellers,  25 
Sandal-wood,  27,  28 
Sandu  stone,  116 
Sappheiros,  106,  107,  119,  120, 

121,  132,  146,  147 
Sapphire,  109, 116, 118, 122, 125, 

130,  146 
Sappir,  68, 104, 105, 106, 118, 119 

120,  121, 125, 132, 146, 147 
Sard,  121 
Sardios,  105,  108,  119,  120,  121, 

Sardis,  38,  81 

Sardonyx,    108,    119,    120,    122, 

124,  129,  133 
Scarlet,  10,  11,  12,  16,  51,  61,  77, 

88,97,98,99,127,128,132, 

137,  138 

Screen,  11,  76,  131,  132 
Scylax  of  Caryanda,  36 
Seal,  68,  90 
Sealskins,  10,  11,  51,  52,  53,  77, 

132,  140 

Seas,  wealth  of,  45 
product  of,  87 


Seat,  60,  61,  74,  75,  105,  112 

Seir,  47 

Senir,  61,  74,  134 

Senna,  84,  85 

Serpentine,  111,  118,  121,  129 

Shamir,  122 

Sheba,  21,  23,  24,  34,  35,  38,  63, 

84,  85,  86,  87,  88,  131,  133 
Shebo,  119,  120,  121,  125,  132 
Sheep,  14,  15,  99,  101,  133,  134 
Sheepskins,  63,  84,  132 
Shewbread,  10,  17,  19,55,60,77, 

83,94,  101,  128,  132 
Shield  and  helmet,  56,  62,  79, 134 
Shinar,  15,  88 
Ships,  ancient, 

their     construction,     rigging, 
equipment,  manning  and  oper- 
ation, 71-73 
Ships,  99 
Shoham,  10,  12,  17,  22,  23,  63, 

68,  118,  119,  120,  121,  122, 

123,  124,  125,  132,  133 
Shoulder-pieces,  12,  60,  100,  115, 

118,  122,  123,  126,  129,  132 
Sidon,  41,  62,  78 
Sidonian  fabrics,  76 
Signet,  14,  53,  90,  127,  128 
Silk,  51,  52,  53,  54,  98,  138 
Silver,  10,  11,  12,  14,  15,  16,  17, 

18,20,25,29,31,40,42,45, 

53,  55,  62,  66,  80,  98,  105, 

108,  111,  112,  113,  131,  134 
Sinai,  118,  130 
Sirgarru  stone,  116 
Skin,  14 
Slaves  (See  Persons),  81,  99,  101, 

102,  134 
Smaragdos,  105,  107,  119,  120, 

121,  123,  132 
Smiris,  122 

Smoky  quartz,  121,  123,  129 
Sockets,  11,  12,  80 
Socotra,  21 
Souls  of  men  (See  Persons),  99, 

101,  102,  134 
South,  lands  of  ,47 
Spain,  30,  80,  129 
Spices,  10,  13,  19,  21,  22,  24,  38, 

40,  63,  83,  87,  99,  101,  133 


INDEX 


155 


Spoil,  division  of  14,  15,  16,  70, 

70,  101,  102,  134 
Spoil,  purification  of,  14,  80,  81, 

84,  101,  134 
Stacte  (see  Myrrh),  83 
Standard,  59,  61,  77,  125 
Steel,  84,  85 
Steps,  19 

Stones,  engraved,  12,  106,  107 
Stones  of  fire,  68,  92 
Storax,  13,  133 
Styrax,  26 
Succoth,  33 
Sumur,  62,  78 
Susa,  38 

Sycomore  wood,  111 
Syria,  19,  22,  38,  57,  82,  83,118, 

129 


Tabernacle,  10,  11,  13,  14,  48, 
52,  53,  54,  56,  59,  60,  70,  77, 
81,  86,  87,  95,  98,  99,  100, 
101,  103,  112,  114,  128,  139, 
140,  141,  142,  143 

Tabernacle  of  dwelling,  91,  140, 
142 

Table,  10,  17,  19,  128,  131,  132, 
140 

Taima,  35 

Talismans,  91,  92,  111,  116,  117 

Tarshish,  (stone)  63,68, 118, 119, 
120,  121,  123,  125,  133,  139 

Tarshish,  (place)  29,  30,  31,  36, 

37,62,79,  131,  134 
Ships  of,  63 

Tarsus,  30,  80 

Tartessus,  30,  31,  80 

Teak,  28 

Teasshur,  75 

Teima,  86 

Temple,  17,  21,  25,  38,  40,  48, 
49,  57,  59,  60,  70,  77,  80,  81, 
84,87,98,93,94,95,99,100, 
101,  103,  106,  107,  109,  111, 
112,  113,  114,  115,  116,  124, 
133,  139,  141,  142 

Tent,  11,  52,  53,77,  86, 113, 131, 
132 

Theion,  147 


Theios,  147 

Throne,  17,  19,  20,  60,  75,  82, 

100,  105,  134,  142 
Thuku,  33,  34 
Thyine  wood,  27,  61,  75,  98, 100, 

134 
Tiglath-pileser  III,  inscription  of, 

39 

Timbers,  28,  29 
Tin,  14,  16,  62,  80,  134 
Tithes,  14,  15,  48,  55,  83,  94,  101 
Togarmah,  62,  81,  134 
Topaz,  109,  116,  118,  121,  125 
Topazion,  108,  119, 120, 121,  132 
Traffic, 

land  of,  55,  56 
place  of,  61,  74 
Treasure,  treasury,  40, 44, 60, 66, 

81,  88,  89 
Tribute,  21,  87 
Tubal,  62,  81,  131,  134 
Tunic,  12 
Turbans,  56 
Turkestan,  118,  129 
Turquoise,  118,  130 
Turrets,  62 
Tyre,  18,  31,  41,  42,  45,  47,  48, 

49,  55,  57,  58,  59,  61,  69, 

78,81 
"  Tyre," 

the  ship,  47,  58,  59,  60,  61-65 

its  standard,  77 

political  significance  of,  89  ,92, 

93 

prince  of,  66,  67 
king  of,  47,  68,  69,  90,  91,  93, 

117 

Uknu  stone,  116 

Upper  Sea,  45 

Urim  and  Thummim,  12,  95,  113, 

114,  126,  127,  133,  140 
Ushu,  26,  83,  87 
Uzal,  63,  84,  85,  133 

Valley  of  Vision,  42 
Vedan,  63,  84 

Veil,  11,  19,  54,  57,  59,  76,  83, 
128,  131,  132 


156 


THE  SHIP  "TYRE 


Vessels,  17,  19,  44,  57,  60,  62,  80, 

81,  89,  94,  95,  98,  111,  131 

Wadi  ed  Dawasir,  87 

Wadi  er  Rumma,  22,  87 

Wafers,  unleavened,  13 

Walls,  18  - 

Western  Sea,  39 

Wheat,  14,  18,  63,  82,  83,  94,  95, 

99,  101,  133 

Wheat  flour,  13,  54,  133 
Wilderness  of  the  sea,  42 
Wine,  13,  14,  18,  19,  20,  55,  63, 

82,  83,  94,  95,  99,  101,  133 
Wood,  14,  17 


Wool,  84 

Woven  in  colors,  Woven  work, 
13,  51,  53,  61,  63,  87,  88 

Yahalom,  68,  118,  119,  120,  121, 

125,  133 
Yashepheh,   68,    118,    119,    120, 

121,125,132 
Yemama,  23,  31,  35,  38,  87 

Zahi,  19 

Zinc,  80,  81 

Zircon,  109,  118,  122 

Zodiac,  115,  124,  128,  129 

Zodiacal  signs,  115 


PUBLICATIONS  157 


By  the  same  Author : 

The  Periplus  of  the  Erythraean  Sea: 

Travel  and  Trade  in  the  Indian  Ocean  by  a  Merchant  of  the 
First  Century.  Translated  from  the  Greek  and  annotated. 
328  pp.,  with  colored  map,  cloth  binding.  New  York:  Long- 
mans, Green  &  Co. 

The  Periplus  of  Hanno: 

A  Voyage  of  Discovery  Down  the  West  African  Coast  by  a 
Carthaginian  Admiral  of  the  Fifth  Century  B.  C.  The  Greek 
text,  with  translation  and  notes.  Illustrated.  34  pp.,  paper 
covers  (second  edition).  Philadelphia:  The  Commercial 
Museum. 

The  Parthian  Stations  of  Isidore  of  Charax: 

An  account  of  the  Overland  Trade  Route  between  the  Levant 
and  India  in  the  First  Century  B.  C.  The  Greek  text,  with 
translation  and  commentary.  Illustrated.  50  pp.,  paper 
covers.  Philadelphia:  The  Commercial  Museum. 

IN  PREPARATION: 
The  Periplus  of  the  Outer  Sea : 

East  and  West,  and  of  the  Great  Islands  therein,  by  Marcian 
of  Heraclea.  A  sailing  guide  of  the  Fourth  Century  A.  D. 
Translated  from  the  Greek,  with  commentary  and  illustrations. 


PUBLICATIONS  OF 
THE  COMMERCIAL  MUSEUM 

PHILADELPHIA 

Commercial  America  and  America  Comercial: 

A  monthly  illustrated  journal  in  English  and  Spanish  editions, 
published  for  circulation  among  merchants,  to  inform  them 
concerning  American  manufactures. 

Weekly  Export  Bulletin: 

for  circulation  among  American  manufacturers,  to  inform  them 
concerning  foreign  trade  opportunities.  (Illustrated). 


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